--- description: Kim Jong Un has ordered North Korea to conduct more nuclear weapons tests, after the country's fourth such test in January. title: Kim Jong Un: We're Going to Do More Tests image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt8fba019086c5cb57/69888a9a428a9e9e5bcd1c1d/rts9zsc1.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [World](/section/world/) ## World Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # North Korea's Kim Jong Un Orders More Nuclear Weapons Tests by [Simon Lewis](/author/simon-lewis/) ## Simon Lewis Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Mar 11, 2016 3:45 AM CUT  North Korean leader Kim Jong Un meets scientists and technicians in this undated photo released by North Korea's Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) in Pyongyang March 9, 2016 North Korean leader Kim Jong Un meets scientists and technicians in this undated photo released by North Korea's Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) in Pyongyang March 9, 2016KCNA—Reuters by [Simon Lewis](/author/simon-lewis/) ## Simon Lewis Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Mar 11, 2016 3:45 AM CUT Kim Jong Un has [ordered](http://www.reuters.com/article/us-northkorea-nuclear-idUSKCN0WC2YQ "undefined") North Korea to conduct more nuclear weapons tests, even though the country’s fourth such test in January drew harsh international condemnation and more sanctions. North Korean state media said on Friday that the country’s supreme leader once again delivered an aggressive message after he watched a ballistic missile launch test, Reuters reports. (A date for the missile test he observed was not given.) “Dear comrade Kim Jong Un said work…must be strengthened to improve nuclear attack capability and issued combat tasks to continue nuclear explosion tests to assess the power of newly developed nuclear warheads and tests to improve nuclear attack capability,” the country’s official news agency said. Despite fresh sanctions after its latest nuclear test and international outrage over a subsequent satellite launch, the North has continued to issue [inflammatory](http://time.com/4252372/north-korea-nuclear-missile-attack/ "undefined") statements. On Wednesday, Kim announced that his country had successfully [miniaturized](http://time.com/4252023/north-korea-miniature-nuclear-warheads/ "undefined") a nuclear warhead, a claim that was met with doubt by experts. \[[Reuters](http://www.reuters.com/article/us-northkorea-nuclear-idUSKCN0WC2YQ "undefined")\] ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4255081/north-korea-kim-jong-un-nuclear-tests/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4255081/north-korea-kim-jong-un-nuclear-tests/"},"headline":"North Korea's Kim Jong Un Orders More Nuclear Weapons Tests","datePublished":"2016-03-11T03:45:24.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-22T15:49:12.172Z","description":"The young dictator recently claimed his country had miniaturized a nuclear warhead","url":"https://time.com/4255081/north-korea-kim-jong-un-nuclear-tests/","keywords":["North Korea","Kim Jong Un"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt8fba019086c5cb57/69888a9a428a9e9e5bcd1c1d/rts9zsc1.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Simon Lewis","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/simon-lewis/"}],"articleSection":"World","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt8fba019086c5cb57/69888a9a428a9e9e5bcd1c1d/rts9zsc1.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"North Korean leader Kim Jong Un meets scientists and technicians in the field of researches into nuclear weapons","caption":"North Korean leader Kim Jong Un meets scientists and technicians in the field of researches into nuclear weapons","creditText":"KCNA—Reuters","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/world/","name":"World"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4255081/north-korea-kim-jong-un-nuclear-tests/","name":"North Korea's Kim Jong Un Orders More Nuclear Weapons Tests"}}]}] ```