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By Micah McCartney
Reporter
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North Korean leader Kim Jong Un on Wednesday unveiled 50 fresh-off-the-line KN-25 rocket launchers, even climbing into the driver’s seat of one of the vehicles during a display.
Why It Matters
At 600 millimeters, North Korea’s KN-25 mulitple rocket launcher is considered the world’s largest artillery rocket system—a super-large platform with a greater range than the U.S.' HIMARS that Pyongyang says can carry tactical nuclear warheads. Analysts describe it as a hybrid between rocket artillery and a short-range ballistic missile, pairing guided, quasi-ballistic flight with multi-tube salvos designed for deep-strike missions.
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The showcase comes as the Kim regime prepares for the ninth Congress of the Workers’ Party of Korea, where leadership is expected to outline new economic and defense priorities. It also unfolds against continued tensions with South Korea over the North’s frequent missile launches and expanding nuclear weapons program, which Pyongyang insists is necessary for self-defense.
Newsweek reached out by email to the North Korean embassy in China with a request for comment.
What To Know
The rocket launchers, each fitted with five launch tubes, were mounted on transporter-erector-launchers (TELs) and formerly handed over to the Korean People's Army in front of Pyongyang’s House of Culture. This venue is used for major party gatherings, including the Workers Party of Korea's once-every-five-years Congress, the state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) wrote.
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“When the respected Comrade Kim Jong Un appeared at the venue, all the participants extended the highest respect and glory to the invincible iron-willed commander who has opened a new horizon of developing the national defense in our own way and reliably defended the prestige and security of our state and people with his far-sighted wisdom," KCNA wrote.
In one image supplied by KCNA, a smiling Kim is seen driving one of the TELs. In a speech, the 42-year-old leader said the “super-precision” system, which entered mass production last year, had been upgraded to incorporate artificial intelligence and a compound guidance system.
North Korea has long sustained an unofficial “second economy” centered on arms production, a model dating back to founder Kim Il Sung’s dual-track policy of economic growth and military buildup. Analysts say this munitions-focused sector continues to receive priority over the civilian economy, with defectors and research group 38 North reporting that resources are routinely diverted toward weapons development at the expense of public welfare.
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What People Are Saying
Kim was quoted by KCNA as saying: “I am not allowed to talk about the principle and mode of using this weapon system. Yet, I dare say it is more than clear that once this weapon is used, our belligerents' military infrastructure and command system will break down all at once. When this weapon is used actually, no force would be able to expect God's protection.”
What Happens Next
North Korea has said the congress will convene in late February but has not yet announced an exact date.
U.S. President Donald Trump met Kim three times during his first term in an ultimately unsuccessful effort to secure limits on North Korea’s UN‑sanctioned nuclear program in exchange for partial sanctions relief.
Trump has said he would be open to meeting Kim again during his second term.
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