North Korean leader Kim Jong Un on Tuesday called for a major expansion of the country’s naval forces, suggesting the regime should build two large warships each year for the next five years.

Speaking at a commissioning ceremony for a new destroyer, Kim suggested North Korea should build two warships comparable in size to its 5,000-ton Choe Hyon-class vessel each year over the next five years, according to the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).

Kim was celebrating the deployment of the new multipurpose destroyer at the port of Nampho. In April, he observed launches of two cruise missiles and three anti-ship missiles from the vessel.

The destroyer successfully completed military operational tests over the past 14 months, according to KCNA.

KIM JONG UN OVERSEES CRUISE MISSILE LAUNCHES FROM PRIZED NEW NORTH KOREAN WARSHIP

Kim previously hailed the development of the Choe Hyon as a major step toward expanding the operational reach and preemptive strike capabilities of North Korea’s military.

Kim also said the navy’s nuclearization is «advancing along its own course,» contributing to the country’s nuclear deterrence.

The naval buildup comes as Kim seeks to strengthen what analysts have long viewed as one of the weaker branches of North Korea’s military.

NORTH KOREA RELAUNCHES WARSHIP THAT SUFFERED EMBARRASSING FAILURE DURING INITIAL LAUNCH

The new multipurpose destroyer Choe Hyon during its commissioning ceremony at Nampho port, North Korea, Tuesday. (KCNA via REUTERS)

KCNA reported that Kim intends to deploy another 5,000-ton destroyer, the Kang Kon, along with larger 10,000-ton strategic warships.

The Kang Kon was first unveiled in May of last year but was damaged during a failed launch at the northern port city of Chongjin. The vessel was later relaunched following repairs.

By adding new capabilities, North Korea’s navy would become «something incredible beyond imagination,» Kim said.

NORTH KOREA RELEASES IMAGES OF DEVELOPMENT OF NUCLEAR-POWERED SUBMARINE

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un speaks during the commissioning ceremony of the new multipurpose destroyer Choe Hyon at Nampho port, North Korea, Tuesday. (KCNA via Reuters)

«Building a modernized naval base has ​emerged as a ​desperate and ⁠essential task,» he added.

State media reported that Kim is also reviewing plans to construct new naval bases.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un observes strategic cruise and anti-warship missiles test-fired from the destroyer Choe Hyon, April 12. (Korean Central News Agency/Reuters)

Speaking during a meeting of the Workers’ Party’s Central Committee on Monday, Kim said the navy would undergo changes to its status, role and scope of operations.

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He did not elaborate on what those changes would entail.

Fox News Digital’s Greg Norman-Diamond and Reuters contributed to this report.

Irán rechazó las declaraciones del presidente Donald Trump según las cuales permitirá el acceso de inspectores de la Agencia Internacional de Energía Atómica a sus principales instalaciones nucleares bombardeadas durante la reciente guerra con Israel y Estados Unidos. La contundente desmentida revela un nuevo foco de tensión que amenaza con complicar las negociaciones para poner fin al conflicto regional.

Como suele hacerlo a través de la red Truth Social, el líder de la Casa Blanca aseguró que Teherán había aceptado “plena y completamente” el regreso de los inspectores nucleares de la agencia dirigida por el argentino Rafael Grossi. Luego del acuerdo firmado por los dos países para poner fin a la guerra en Oriente Medio, las dos capitales negocian cuestiones cruciales, como el futuro del plan nuclear de Teherán.

Trump dijo que las conversaciones técnicas, desarrolladas en los últimos días en Suiza “van bien” y que “Irán ha aceptado plena y completamente inspecciones nucleares del más alto nivel durante un largo período de tiempo (¡¡¡Infinito!!!). Esto garantizará la ‘Honestidad Nuclear’”. En otro párrafo en su red social, el presidente dijo que “sobre la base de ésta y otras concesiones importantes que está haciendo Irán, he acordado permitir que el estrecho de Ormuz permanezca ABIERTO, sin ningún otro bloqueo naval”, añadió.

El tránsito por el estrecho de Ormuz, una vía fluvial vital para la exportación de petróleo y gas, ha sido un importante punto de fricción durante la guerra desatada a fines de febrero, que sacudió la economía mundial. Y según anunciaron ayer Irán y Omán, dos estados ribereños, se disponen a trabajar para imponer el pago de alguna clase de peaje o tarifa, algo que no existía antes de la guerra (ver aparte).

Pero poco antes del mensaje de Trump, Irán afirmó que no tiene intención de permitir que la agencia atómica de la ONU (la OIEA) inspeccione sus sitios nucleares bombardeados por fuerzas estadounidenses e israelíes el año pasado. La magnitud exacta de los daños aún se desconoce y Teherán invoca cuestiones de seguridad para negar el acceso a estas instalaciones.

Preguntado por el desmentido iraní durante una rueda de prensa, Trump reafirmó que los inspectores de la OIEA se desplazarán al terreno “a su debido tiempo”. Luego agregó: “Ellos (los iraníes) se equivocan. Nos lo dijeron en privado, y contamos con un nivel de inspecciones del 100%. Y si ellos tuvieran razón, cancelaría las reuniones de inmediato”, declaró.

Persiste la duda sobre el estado de las reservas de uranio altamente enriquecido de Teherán, un motivo de choque con Washington. Irán siempre ha negado querer dotarse de la bomba atómica, al tiempo que se mantiene inflexible en su derecho a desarrollar una industria nuclear civil y completa.

La OIEA no ha respondido a solicitudes de comentarios sobre su posible participación. La agencia ha entrado y salido de Irán desde la guerra de 12 días de Israel en 2025, pero no se le ha concedido acceso a los sitios de enriquecimiento bombardeados que Estados Unidos atacó en su ofensiva.

El régimen teocrático también negó los anuncios de Trump y de su vice, JDVance, respecto a que el dinero iraní que sea liberado en cuentas occidentales será usado para comprar maíz, trigo y soja de EE.UU. “Resulta curioso que la filosofía y el objetivo de la guerra, que era la destrucción de la civilización iraní y el colapso de Irán, se haya convertido en enriquecer a los agricultores estadounidenses”, declaró el vocero de la cancillería iraní.

En tanto, EE.UU., Irán y otros países del Golfo, junto con representantes de la industria marítima, ejecutan un plan para evacuar a 11.000 tripulantes varados en barcos anclados en Ormuz, según el jefe de la Organización Marítima Internacional, Arsenio Domínguez. “Hemos obtenido las garantías de seguridad necesarias y hemos verificado las condiciones para una navegación segura con el fin de apoyar estas operaciones”, aseguró.

La organización sostuvo a su vez que el traslado de los barcos se hará gradualmente para evitar cualquier riesgo de colisión. La empresa de datos y análisis Kpler confirmó que 39 barcos cruzaron por el estrecho el último lunes, después de unas 92 travesías entre el viernes y el domingo. Antes de la guerra, aproximadamente 100 barcos al día cruzaban por el estrecho.

Mamdani-endorsed state assembly member Claire Valdez secured the Democratic nomination Tuesday after defeating a crowded field in the primary for New York’s 7th Congressional District.

The democratic socialist, who had been leading in the polls, defeated Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso, City Council Member Julie Won and civil rights attorney Vichal Kumar to fill the seat being vacated by Rep. Nydia Velázquez, D-N.Y.

Velázquez, the first Puerto Rican woman elected to Congress, announced she would not seek re-election in November after more than three decades in office.

In an endorsement posted on her campaign website, New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani praised Valdez for supporting him during his mayoral campaign and sharing his progressive vision.

HASAN PIKER CELEBRATES AMERICA BEING ‘CLOSER THAN EVER’ TO SOCIALISM AS HE BACKS NYC CANDIDATES

«Claire Valdez stood with me on day one because she understands how change is won — by building power, raising expectations and delivering for working people,» Mamdani said. «She comes from the labor movement and knows how to turn struggle into real gains on housing, health care and workers’ rights. That’s the kind of partner I need in Congress, and why I’m proud to endorse her.»

Velázquez, who also supported Mamdani’s mayoral campaign, publicly slammed the mayor in January after he endorsed Valdez over Reynoso.

«Honeymoons are short, and people need to pay attention to the work at hand,» she told The New York Times.

MAMDANI’S PRIMARY WIN EXPOSES DEMOCRAT DIVIDE AS TOP LEADERS WITHHOLD ENDORSEMENTS

NYPD officers arrest New York City Council member Tiffany Caban and New York Assembly member Claire Valdez (right) along with protesters after they refused to leave the lobby of Sen. Chuck Schumer’s office in Manhattan on Aug. 1, 2025. (Barry Williams/New York Daily News/Tribune News Service)

«Primaries sometimes can be a distraction from the work that you need to do,» Velázquez said, adding that the mayor’s involvement «opens up fights» with the people he governs.

Valdez, a vocal critic of Israel, has called to abolish U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), expand universal healthcare, raise taxes on the wealthy, boost affordable housing and strengthen unions.

«It’s a district that doesn’t just want strongly worded letters but a real economic vision to win the working class away from Trumpism,» according to her campaign website.

«That’s what Claire will deliver.»

SOCIALISTS CHEER ‘SHOCKWAVE’ PRIMARY NIGHT AS DSA-BACKED CANDIDATES WIN, ADVANCE ACROSS THE MAP

Rep. Nydia Velázquez holds a «Musk Steals» protest sign with fellow Democrats as President Donald Trump speaks during a joint session of Congress at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., on March 4, 2025. (Win McNamee/Pool/AFP)

Controversial Twitch streamer Hasan Piker and the Justice Democrats, the progressive group that helped launch Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s insurgent House campaign in 2018, have also thrown their support behind Valdez in the race to represent the district, which spans progressive strongholds across Brooklyn and Queens.

At a Brooklyn rally this month for candidates endorsed by the New York chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America, Piker called Valdez and activist Darializa Avila Chevalier, who is seeking to oust five-term incumbent Rep. Adriano Espaillat, D-N.Y., in New York’s 13th Congressional District, «giants» of the socialist movement.

«For the longest time, I thought we were so far away from socialism, and we might still be far away from socialism, but we do have an opportunity right here, right now, more than ever before,» Piker said at the rally.

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Piker added that this could be one of many victories for the socialist movement.

«By the end of these midterms, Zohran will seem unremarkable because, by then, we will have elected so many brilliant fighters into legislative offices throughout New York City and the state,» Piker said.

Fox News Digital’s Adam Pack contributed to this report.