North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has reportedly visited a special operations training base and inspected the training of sniper units, stressing the importance of modern weapons and practical training. 

According to the North’s state Korean Central News Agency on Thursday, Kim praised the new sniper rifle designed and developed by the North’s Academy of Defense Science this year, expressing satisfaction that the units were armed with the latest weapon.

At the base, which is directly under the authority of the General Staff of the Korean People’s Army, Kim reportedly also emphasized the role of snipers in combat and called for efforts to drastically strengthen the country’s special operations forces and specialized sniper forces.

The North Korean leader then said the Central Military Commission of the Workers’ Party will look at creating a central sniper training center under the General Staff.