N. Korea opens new defense museum featuring ICBMs, other advanced weaponry

Seoul, on October 13 (Yonhap) - North Korea recently inaugurated a new defense museum highlighting a diverse array of weaponry, including its latest intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs), with leader Kim Jong-un in attendance, according to state media reports on Tuesday. The opening ceremony of the National Defense Revolution Museum was held on Sunday, coinciding with the 81st founding anniversary of the Workers Party of Korea (WPK) on October 10.

Kim Jong-un toured the museum alongside the party's central leadership, which comprises the secretaries of the WPK central committee and commanding officers from the North's national defense ministry, among other officials. Kim's wife and daughter, Ju-ae, were also present during the event. The North Korean leader described the new defense museum as a "revolutionary treasure" that only the WPK can possess and a "precious monument" built by a "powerful state and people with their absolute strength," capable of defending themselves.

Kim emphasized that it was the WPK's duty to develop the defense industry into the most potent one globally, highlighting that the country's "juche-based weaponry," a central ideology, would be developed and finalized through strenuous efforts alongside the museum's scale and contents. The Juche ideology, which means self-reliance, is the core belief of the North Korean regime.

State media photos revealed various weapons, ranging from personal combat gear to drones and missiles, on display at the museum, including the under-development Hwasong-20 ICBM, a new submarine-launched ballistic missile, and 600-millimeter super-large multiple rocket launchers.