Analysis-North Korea signals expansive mission for its nuclear weapons

FILE PHOTO: Hwasong-17 intercontinental ballistic missiles take part in a nighttime military parade to mark the 90th anniversary of the founding of the Korean People's Revolutionary Army in Pyongyang, North Korea, in this undated photo released by North Korea's Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) on April 26, 2022. KCNA via REUTERS

SEOUL (Reuters) - As South Korea’s new conservative president prepares to take office, North Korea is outlining an expansive, ambiguous, and potentially destabilising doctrine for using its nuclear weapons, analysts said.

In a speech at a military parade on Monday, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un said his nuclear force was not only tasked with preventing war through deterrence, but potentially carrying out strikes against anyone who violates the North’s “fundamental interests.”