North Korea's Kim Jong-un says he will speed up steps to become a nuclear weapons superpower

SEOUL — North Korean leader Kim Jong-un said his country will speed up steps towards becoming a military superpower with nuclear weapons and would not rule out using them if enemies attacked it, state media KCNA said on Oct 8.

Kim made the comments in a speech on Oct 7 at a university, which was printed in full by KCNA.

He said he has no intention of attacking South Korea, but "if the enemy attempts to use force against our country" North Korea's military will use all aggression without hesitation, which "does not preclude the use of nuclear weapons".

Kim also called for extensive strengthening of North Korea's defences, according to KCNA.

He also sent a birthday message to Russian President Vladimir Putin, KCNA said.

Kim called Putin his "closest comrade", saying "strategic and cooperative relations" between the two countries will be raised to a new level to work on "defending regional and global peace and international justice".

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