Who Needs a Red Carpet? Kim Has Warships and Uranium for Xi's North Korea Visit

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has staged a conspicuous show of military strength in the days leading up to a rare visit by Chinese President Xi Jinping , inspecting the sea trials of a repaired destroyer while simultaneously unveiling a new nuclear fuel facility . Analysts say the moves are calculated to ensure Kim arrives at the negotiating table on his own terms.

North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency said Kim visited the 5,000-ton destroyer Kang Kon on Thursday as it underwent capability tests. Photos released by the agency showed him accompanied by his increasingly prominent teenage daughter, believed to be Kim Ju Ae , whom South Korean officials say may be being groomed as his successor.

Kim declared the navy a key pillar of a new five-year defence plan endorsed at a ruling party congress earlier this year, calling for forces capable of delivering a "deadly blow at the enemy any moment under the water or on the water." He also outlined plans to build larger 10,000-ton-class destroyers and develop unspecified "underwater secret weapons."

Kang Kon is the second of two destroyers North Korea unveiled last year, following the Choe Hyon , whose development Kim hailed as a major step toward expanding the operational range and pre-emptive strike capabilities of his nuclear-armed military. State media said the ships are designed to carry a range of weapons systems, including anti-aircraft and anti-ship weapons as well as nuclear-capable ballistic and cruise missiles , though some experts have questioned their effectiveness in active duty.

Kang Kon was damaged during a botched launching ceremony in May last year at the northeastern port of Chongjin , triggering a furious reaction from Kim, who called the failure "criminal." Outside experts have continued to question whether the vessel is fully battle-ready.

The naval display came days after an even more pointed provocation. North Korea unveiled a new facility to produce the ingredients for nuclear bombs, assessed by South Korea's military as a uranium enrichment plant , during which Kim announced plans to expand the country's nuclear forces exponentially.

Experts say the timing of the disclosure suggests Kim was eager to cement North Korea's status as a nuclear weapons state ahead of Xi's visit. They believe he ultimately seeks international recognition as a nuclear power to secure sanctions relief , with the longer-term goal of pursuing arms-reduction talks with Washington.

Xi's two-day state visit, scheduled for Monday and Tuesday, will be his first trip to Pyongyang in nearly seven years. It comes just weeks after he separately hosted US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin in Beijing.

Kim has continued expanding North Korea's nuclear arsenal since high-stakes diplomacy with Trump collapsed in 2019. While he has prioritised ties with Russia in recent years by sending troops and weapons to support the war in Ukraine, he has more recently sought to rebuild relations with China , North Korea's largest trading partner and principal source of aid.

The back-to-back displays of naval power and nuclear expansion suggest Kim intends to enter the summit not as a supplicant, but as a leader pressing Beijing and the wider international community to recognise North Korea as a nuclear power with significant strategic leverage .