North Korea Military Ready to Use Nuclear Weapons

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un ordered his country to be ready to use its nuclear weapons at any time and the military to be in "pre-emptive attack" mode in the face of growing threats from its enemies, state media said on Friday.

Kim said North Korea should "bolster up (its) nuclear force both in quality and quantity" and stressed "the need to get the nuclear warheads deployed for national defense always on standby so as to be fired any moment," North's official KCNA news agency quoted him as saying.

"Now is the time for us to convert our mode of military counteraction toward the enemies into a pre-emptive attack one in every aspect."

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The comments marked a further escalation of tension on the Korean peninsula after the United nations Security Council imposed harsh new sanctions against the isolated state on Wednesday for its nuclear program.

North Korea, known for belligerent rhetoric, has previously threatened pre-emptive attacks on its enemies, including South Korea and the United States.

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