Kim Jong-un has been officially handed direct command of North Korea's nuclear arsenal following the sudden publication of the secretive state's overhauled constitution. The updated legal document appeared on the regime's official propaganda portal, Naenara, on Wednesday - more than two and a half years after Pyongyang scrubbed the text from the internet.
Constitutional changes elevate Kim's authority
According to a note attached to the newly released Korean-language text, the sweeping changes were formally adopted on March 23 during the first session of the 15th Supreme People's Assembly, the country's rubber-stamp parliament.
The revised constitution significantly elevates Kim's personal status and authority, explicitly enshrining his direct command over the nation's nuclear forces for the first time.
'Two hostile states' doctrine codified
Crucially, the document (which has since disappeared) also codifies the dictator's hardline "two hostile states" doctrine. All historic references to peaceful reunification with South Korea have been completely stripped out, while a newly established territorial clause formally defines the South as a separate, neighbouring foreign country rather than a partner for reconciliation.
Pyongyang originally pulled its constitution offline in early 2024 after Kim ordered officials to rewrite the supreme law, declaring that inter-Korean relations were no longer about kinship, but rather two warring nations.
Until now, the exact wording of the March amendments had remained concealed by the secretive regime. However, the newly published text largely mirrors a leaked version obtained and made public by South Korea's unification ministry in May.
Bureaucratic additions and regional tensions
That earlier leak had already indicated that Pyongyang had redrawn its constitutional borders and expanded Kim's nuclear grip, though North Korean state media had remained tight-lipped about the specifics at the time.
Alongside the military and territorial shifts, the Naenara version reveals minor bureaucratic additions regarding how the regime's inner circle operates. A new clause stipulates that major decisions concerning the duties and powers of the Cabinet must now be settled at full plenary meetings, whilst routine matters will be handled during smaller standing meetings.
The sudden transparency on the state-run web portal comes amid soaring tensions on the Korean Peninsula. Pyongyang has repeatedly rebuffed diplomatic overtures from South Korean President Lee Jae Myung, and just yesterday, Kim's powerful sister, Kim Yo-jong, lashed out at UN Secretary-General António Guterres as "prejudiced and irresponsible" after he called for inter-Korean dialogue following a recent border mine blast.
