Speaking at a meeting of the DPRK's parliament, leader Kim Jong-un emphasized ongoing nuclear development is in the face of the "worst threat" posed by the US and its regional allies South Korea and Japan.
Pyongyang's representative to the UN had also recently remarked on the growing nuclear threat the US poses to the region at the United Nations General Assembly.
This comes with South Korea holding its first military parade in a decade, demonstrating the heightened military tension in the region.