North Korea Ramps Up Nuclear Arsenal and Ballistic Missile Testing

Recent advancements and aggressive rhetoric signal a shift away from normalizing relations with the US, raising regional tensions.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has called for the 'exponential' expansion of North Korea's nuclear arsenal and a ramp-up of ballistic missile testing, including the launch of three new spy satellites.
US satellites have detected the modernization and expansion of the North Korean Manpho Unha Chemical Complex, linked to the production of chemicals used for missile fuel and reagents for nuclear weapons.
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) reported that a second nuclear reactor is operational at Yongbyon and it could be used to produce weapons-grade fuel.
Analysts warn that North Korea's regime is abandoning their long-held goal of 'normalizing' relations with the United States, which has profoundly changed the strategic landscape in and around Korea.
North Korea recently tested an intermediate-range ballistic missile (IRBM) carrying a hypersonic warhead, marking a serious threat to US aircraft-carrier strike groups in the West Pacific.