Kim Jong Un does Top Gun: North Korean leader puts pilots through their paces as he calls on his people to step up preparations for war
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un channeled his inner Maverick this week as he supervised drills by the nation's air force and called for the military to step up its preparations for war.
Kim inspected anti-aircraft combat and air strike manoeuvres by North Korea 's 1st Air Division on Thursday, state media reported.
The hermit kingdom's 'Supreme Leader' spoke to troops while wearing a leather jacket straight out of Tom Cruise classic Top Gun.
The North Korean premier called for 'all units in the entire military' to bring about 'a breakthrough in war preparation', KCNA reported.
Footage of the drills on North Korean state TV showed a MiG-29 jet launching a missile.
The projectile appeared to be a North Korean version of a Russia-developed mid- to long-range air-to-air missile, Hong Min, North Korea analyst at the Korea Institute for National Unification, said.
Kim has spent much of the last month trying to project strength with a series of military-related engagements.
He has overseen a missile test, inspected tank and munitions plants, made a rare visit to the Russian embassy in Pyongyang reaffirming the country's alliance with Russia, and supervised tank firing drills and special operations unit training.
Kim, dressed in a leather jacket, speaks to troops on Thursday - one of many military-related engagements the 'Supreme Leader' has carried out over the last month
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un (C) saluting a MiG-29 flypast during anti-air combat and air raid drills by the Guards 1st Air Division of the North Korean Army at an undisclosed location in North Korea
North Korea also slammed the U.S. State Department for placing it on a list of countries that do not fully cooperate with U.S. counterterrorism efforts.
Pyongyang has been placed on the list every year since 1997, South Korea 's Yonhap News Agency said.
'The more the U.S. provokes the DPRK with unnecessary and inefficient malicious acts, the further it will escalate the irreconcilable hostility between the DPRK and the U.S.,' a North Korean Foreign Ministry spokesperson said, using the country's official name, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.
'The DPRK will... take effective and proper measures to cope with the U.S. hostile provocations in all spheres.'
Earlier this month North Korea and Russia announced that they have begun building their first road link between the two countries announced.
The two nations hailed the construction of a bridge over a border river as a major development that will further expand their political and economic ties.
The kilometre-long Tumangang Road bridge, which is expected to take 18 months to construct, aims to expand cross-border travel of people, tourism and circulation of commodities, Russian and North Korean news agencies reported.
Relations and exchange programs between the two countries have been flourishing in recent years, with North Korea supplying ammunition and troops to support Russia's war against Ukraine.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un is giving a round of applause by pilots from the country's military
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un (R) watching a flypast of three Saetbyol-9 multi-purpose attack drones during anti-air combat and air raid drills by the Guards 1st Air Division of the North Korean Army
Kim Jong Un talks to military members as he inspects projectiles during a visit to an airfield in this photo released by the Korean Central News Agency
In April Kim unveiled a nuclear-capable naval destroyer that he claimed would bolster North Korea's ability to defend itself in the face of perceived aggression from the US and its regional allies.
The North Korean leader attended the warship's launch ceremony at the western port of Nampo with his teenage daughter Kim Ju Ae, according to state-run media.
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