North Korean leader Kim Jong‑un has visited key munitions factories and ordered an expansion of missile and artillery shell production, while outlining plans to modernize existing facilities and build new arms plants.

The state‑run Korean Central News Agency(KCNA) said Friday that Kim inspected major munitions industry enterprises and received a report on this year’s missile and artillery shell output, along with fourth‑quarter production conditions.

Kim called for raising next year’s production targets to meet the country’s long‑term missile and artillery force requirements, stressing the need to expand overall manufacturing capacity and assigning technical and economic tasks to support that goal.

The KCNA reported that Kim also emphasized the importance of establishing new munitions industry enterprises as scheduled to meet projected demand from the military’s missile and artillery units, adding that plans for new factory construction will be finalized at the upcoming ninth party congress.

He further urged continued modernization of the munitions sector by making production structures at existing factories more efficient and practical.