North Korea claims it’s sending 250 new missile launchers toward the South Korean border

Seoul, South Korea CNN —

North Korea claims it is sending 250 new tactical ballistic missile launchers toward its border with South Korea, in the latest bellicose declaration by leader Kim Jong Un against its neighbor.

Photographs published by the North Korean state newspaper Rodong Sinmun showed what appears to be vehicle-based missile launchers, with dozens of large green military trucks lined up in neat rows before Kim.

In an elaborate and orchestrated ceremony on Sunday night, a crowd of spectators cheered as vehicles rolled past and fireworks shot into the sky.

Kim personally oversaw the transfer of equipment to military commanders and chiefs of staff, and delivered a speech claiming the new missile launchers were built with North Korean technology, state media reported.

He added that the display is the first stage of planned missile force construction for the North’s military border units.

“Dialogue or confrontation can be our choice, but what we must be more thoroughly prepared for is confrontation,” Kim said, adding it was the “keynote of our policy toward the US that we have consistently maintained.”

North Korea will make it clear that “if the US ignores our repeated warnings and continues to attempt to undermine the security of the region, it will have dire consequences for its own security,” the dictator added.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un speaks during a ceremony in Pyongyang, on August 4, 2024.

What we know about North Korea’s abilities

The border between North and South Korea is already one of the most militarized in the world, and Pyongyang has long claimed that it has huge amounts of artillery and military hardware pointed south.

Sunday’s display in Pyongyang comes during a summer of