TOKYO: North Korea’s state-run Korean Central News Agency released on Tuesday photos of what appeared to be the Hwasan-31 tactical nuclear warhead for the first time.

One photo shows a row of around 10 apparent nuclear warheads and another a poster on the wall in the background reading the “Hwasan-31 nuclear warhead” and showing a diagram of how the warheads can be mounted on various types of missiles.

Those images were captured when North Korean leader Kim Jong Un was giving on-site instructions on nuclear weapons projects.

Kim Dong-yup, professor at the University of North Korean Studies in South Korea, said the warheads appear to be downsized, lightweight and standardized ones that can fit into a variety of missiles.

According to the news agency, the North Korean leader was briefed by the Nuclear Weapons Institute on Monday about the true state of production to reinforce the reclusive country’s nuclear forces in terms of both quality and quantity.

It also quoted Kim as saying that it will become unnecessary for North Korea to use nuclear weapons forever only if the country gets perfectly ready for using them anytime and anywhere.

Pointing to the fact that Pyongyang unveiled nuclear warheads shortly before its fifth and sixth nuclear tests, South Korean media reports said a seventh test may be imminent.

JIJI Press