There took place on March 18 and 19 a combined tactical exercise to substantially bolster the country's war deterrent and nuclear counterattack capability and make relevant units get familiar with the procedures and processes for executing their tactical nuclear attack missions.

The combined tactical exercise simulating a nuclear counterattack by the units for the operation of tactical nukes was executed under the tense situation in which large-scale war games are being frantically scaled up by the US-south Korean allied forces to invade the DPRK and US nuclear strategic assets are massively brought to south Korea.

The exercise was also aimed at demonstrating our tougher will to make an actual war response and sending a stronger warning to the enemy who are expanding their war games for aggression and taking a series of military actions strong in their offensive nature, getting undisguised in their explicit attempt to unleash a war against the DPRK in disregard of its repeated warnings.

Kim Jong Un, general secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea and president of the State Affairs of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, guided the combined tactical exercise for nuclear counterattack.

The two-day exercise was conducted, divided into a drill for managing the nuclear strike control system, actual training for switching over to a nuclear counterattack posture and drill for launching tactical ballistic missile tipped with a mock nuclear warhead.

On March 18, a drill was repeatedly held several times to reexamine the reliability of the operation system for the command and management over the tactical nuclear force in a multi-faceted way and to get familiar with the order of action and combat methods for promptly switching over to nuclear attack, while strictly examining in the light of security the accuracy of the procedures of issuing and receiving an order of nuclear attack under various simulated emergency circumstances, the order of handling nuclear weapons and the operation procedures for implementing different nuclear attack plans.

It was proved through the first-day exercise that the whole process of preparing for a nuclear counterattack is working in a fast, strict, highly reliable and safe system.

A ballistic missile launching drill simulating a tactical nuclear attack was staged on Sunday morning.

The drill was observed by Minister of National Defence Kang Sun Nam, the combined unit chief in charge of commanding all the tactical nuclear operation units and commanding officers of the missile force units and sub-units under his command on the east and west fronts.

It was also watched by relevant officials of the Party Central Committee, commanding officers of the General Missile Bureau and relevant personnel of the Nuclear Weapons Institute.

Prior to the launching drill, there was an inspection of the normality of operation and safety of technical and institutional mechanisms, including the procedures for the final nuclear attack order authentication and the launch approval system, which was followed by a repeated practice for getting familiar with relevant action methods.

Then, a firing drill simulating a nuclear strike at a major enemy target was staged.

The missile was tipped with a test warhead simulating a nuclear warhead.

The tactical ballistic missile launched in Cholsan County, North Phyongan Province, accurately exploded at 800 metres above the target waters in the East Sea of Korea set in its 800km strike range, thus proving once again the reliability of the operation of nuclear explosion control devices and detonators fitted in the nuclear warhead.

The firing drill had no adverse effect on the security of the neighbouring countries.

Expressing satisfaction with the combined tactical exercise, General Secretary Kim Jong Un said that the exercise greatly improved the actual war capability of the units and sub-units performing the important fire assault duty and filled all the sub-units with great confidence. The exercise marked an important occasion in preparing our nuclear combat force to rapidly and accurately perform its crucial mission of war deterrence and securing war initiative any moment and under any unexpected circumstances, he added.

Saying that it is very important to continuously organize and conduct such drills under the simulated conditions of an actual war, he stressed the need to make service personnel get familiar with any unexpected circumstances and more perfectly prepared in their active posture of making an immediate and overwhelming nuclear counterattack anytime.

Noting that the DPRK cannot actually deter a war with the mere fact that it is a nuclear weapons state, he said that it is possible to fulfil the important strategic mission of war deterrence and reliably defend the sovereignty of the country, the peaceful life and future of its people and the cause of socialist construction only when the nuclear force is perfected as a means actually capable of mounting an attack on the enemy and its nuclear attack posture for prompt and accurate activation is rounded off to always strike fear into the enemy.

Saying that the present situation, in which the enemies are getting ever more pronounced in their moves for aggression against the DPRK, urgently requires the DPRK to bolster up its nuclear war deterrent exponentially, he set forth the important nuclear force-building orientation and the strategic tasks to be fulfilled in preparing the nuclear force for a war.

The nuclear force of the DPRK will strongly deter, control and manage the enemy's reckless moves and provocations with its high war readiness and carry out its important mission without hesitation in case of any unwanted situation.