North Korea sustains high defense spending with new budget

By KIM TONG-HYUNG
Associated Press

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — North Korea’s rubber-stamp parliament has passed a budget that sustains a high level of defense spending despite the country’s economic troubles. Leader Kim Jong Un has been pushing for an aggressive expansion of his nuclear arsenal. He apparently did not attend the assembly’s two-day session that ended Wednesday. It came weeks after Kim called for an “exponential increase” of nuclear warheads, mass production of battlefield tactical nuclear weapons targeting “enemy” South Korea and the development of more advanced intercontinental ballistic missiles designed to reach the U.S. mainland. Analysts say Kim’s aggressive approach is aimed at forcing the United States to accept the idea of North Korea as a nuclear power and gain leverage in negotiations.