N Korea's Kim Gives the Go-Ahead to Mass Production of New Anti-Aircraft Weapon

TOKYO (Sputnik) — North Korean Leader Kim Jong Un supervised the tests of the new anti-aircraft defense system and ordered its mass production amid the escalation of the crisis on the Korean peninsula, triggered by Pyongyang’s repeated nuclear tests, local media reported Sunday.

Earlier in the week, US President Donald Trump and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe agreed to step up sanctions against North Korea for its continued missile tests and nuclear program.

Kim supervised the tests, organized by country’s academy of national defense and expressed his satisfaction with system’s accuracy in hitting targets, ordering to produce a large volume of the weapon, the North Korean state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported.

The new anti-aircraft defense system is aimed at intercepting and destroying enemy’s drones and rockets, according to the agency.

Earlier in the day, Washington send its third aircraft carrier, the USS Nimitz, to the Western Pacific Ocean to join previously deployed the USS Carl Vinson and the USS Ronald Reagan aircraft carriers due to the North Korean nuclear crisis, according to media reports. US media reported that Trump might order a strike against North Korea in light of the latter's military activities. Top North Korean officials have said the country was ready for nuclear attacks in the event of US military aggression.

The most recent launch of North Korean ballistic missile took place on May 21. The ground-to-ground missile reportedly flew some 500 kilometers (310 miles) before falling into the Sea of Japan short of reaching Japan’s exclusive economic zone.