KIM Jong Un has rolled out his latest doomsday toy – a vast nuclear-powered submarine.

The tyrant did so as he personally oversaw a fresh round of long-range missile tests, doubling down on a military build-up that is rattling Asia and daring the West.

North Korean state media released new images of what it claims is an 8,700-ton nuclear-propelled submarine, showing a largely completed hull inside a shipyard as Kim toured the site flanked by senior generals – and his teenage daughter, widely seen as a potential heir.

Kim declared the vessel an “epoch-making” leap in his nuclear arsenal and vowed to press ahead with arming the navy as tensions on the Korean Peninsula spiral.

The photos, published by the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), mark the clearest glimpse yet of the submarine, described by Pyongyang as a “strategic guided missile submarine” designed to carry nuclear weapons.

Earlier images released in March showed only partial sections of the hull.

Experts say the latest shots suggest the boat is close to operational.

“Showing the entire vessel now seems to indicate that most of the equipment has already been installed and it is just about ready to be launched into the water,” said Moon Keun-sik, a submarine expert at Seoul’s Hanyang University and a former South Korean navy officer.

He believes the submarine could be tested at sea within months.

The reveal came as KCNA separately reported that Kim supervised the test-firing of new long-range surface-to-air missiles on Wednesday, with targets destroyed at distances of up to 200 kilometres.

South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff confirmed multiple launches from the North’s east coast and said allied intelligence agencies were analysing the weapons.

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Kim used the submarine visit to lash out at Seoul, branding South Korea’s US-backed push to develop its own nuclear-powered submarine an “offensive act” that he claimed gravely violated the North’s security and maritime sovereignty.

He said the South’s plans only reinforced the need to accelerate the nuclear arming of North Korea’s navy.

KCNA said the submarine project forms part of a broader drive to modernise the fleet, alongside new attack destroyers and faster construction of vessels capable of carrying “various weapons”.

Analysts warn a nuclear-powered submarine would give Pyongyang a dangerous new edge – able to stay submerged for long periods and potentially fire missiles from underwater, making detection far harder for rivals.

But there are lingering doubts over whether the sanctions-hit regime can truly master the technology on its own.

Some experts believe North Korea’s deepening ties with Russia – including reported military support for Moscow’s war in Ukraine – may have helped unlock key know-how.

Others argue the reactor is likely home-grown, possibly with limited outside assistance.

Kim first promised a nuclear submarine in 2021 as part of a sweeping weapons wish list aimed at countering what he called growing US-led threats.

Since then, North Korea has tested solid-fuelled intercontinental ballistic missiles, unveiled hypersonic weapons, launched spy satellites and revealed a new destroyer designed to boost pre-emptive strike capability.

The show of force comes as diplomacy lies in ruins.

Pyongyang has repeatedly dismissed calls from Washington and Seoul to revive talks on curbing its nuclear and missile programmes, which collapsed after a failed summit with Donald Trump during the US president’s first term.