Overview

• Pyongyang launched Defence Development-2025 for a third straight year, showcasing ICBMs, cruise missiles, drones and armored vehicles.
• Kim Jong Un framed the modernization drive around a nuclear deterrent and said additional military steps would follow in response to U.S. force deployments.
• He accused the United States and South Korea of drills built on nuclear-operation scenarios and warned that South Korea must judge whether its territory would be safe.
• Kim said unspecified “special assets” were assigned to major targets, a phrase analysts interpret as referring to nuclear-capable ballistic missiles.
• South Korea called for dialogue as the showcase precedes the Oct. 10 Workers’ Party parade that observers expect could feature new systems, and Seoul has recently reported a larger stockpile of weapons‑grade uranium in the North.