North Korea's Kim calls for faster naval buildup amid US tensions
Kim said the buildup was needed for sovereignty at sea, while his sister said dialogue with Washington was not necessary for Pyongyang's interests.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un called for a rapid buildup of naval combat power on Monday during a visit to a shipyard, Turkey's state-run news agency Anadolu Agency reported.
Kim visited the Nampho shipyard, where he was briefed on ongoing upgrades and inspected a new warship under construction, the report said.
Kim said the country needed to "rapidly bolster up" its surface and underwater combat power to defend its sovereignty at sea.
He said recent geopolitical developments and "hostile acts of the enemies" in the region showed the need for "the most developed and powerful warship."
The report did not provide the vessel's specifications, but said it was designed to carry out complex missions suited to modern warfare.
Kim's sister, Kim Yo-jong, said on Wednesday that dialogue with Washington remained an option for peace but would not serve Pyongyang's own interests.
Her remarks came a day after she rejected FBI findings that Pyongyang was behind the theft of more than $6 billion in cryptocurrency from Binance, the world's largest crypto exchange.
She described the cryptocurrency case as "no more than a tip of iceberg" that revealed what she called the essence of US hostile policy toward North Korea.
She said Washington abandoning its hostile policy was "a major premise and key to solving all problems," and that North Korea had no reason to hold talks with the US until that happened.
She warned that Pyongyang would respond to what it views as continued US hostility.
North Korea has been under United Nations and US sanctions for years over its nuclear and missile programs, and Washington has accused Pyongyang of using cyberattacks to raise money for those programs.
