North Korea has issued a document outlining its approach to nuclear warfare, warning it will not hesitate to use the bomb if it perceives threats to its senior leadership or “important strategic targets,” state media has reported.
A statement on the “nuclear force policy of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea” was carried by the state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) on Friday, noting that while the government considers nuclear weapons a “last resort,” it would deploy them to prevent “aggression that seriously threatens the security of the state and people.”
The policy document went on to note that Pyongyang would launch a preemptive strike “automatically and immediately” if officials believe “the command and control system for the national nuclear force is in danger due to an attack by hostile forces.”