North Korea’s talks of new army duties suggest nuclear deployment

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, centre, attends a meeting of the Central Military Commission of the ruling Workers’ Party in Pyongyang, North Korea (Korean Central News Agency/Korea News Service/AP)

North Korea discussed assigning additional duties to its frontline army units at a key military meeting, state media said, in a suggestion the country may want to deploy battlefield nuclear weapons targeting South Korea along the rivals’ tense border.

The discussion comes as South Korea officials said North Korea has finished preparation for its first nuclear test in five years as part of its possible efforts to build a warhead to be mounted on short-range weapons capable of hitting targets in South Korea.