SEOUL, South Korea — SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — North Korean leader Kim Jong Un inspected his new destroyer for two straight days ahead of its commissioning and observed a test of cruise missiles fired from the warship, vowing to accelerate the nuclear-armament of his navy, state media said Thursday.

The North’s official Korean Central News Agency said Kim, during his visits to the western shipyard of Nampo on Tuesday and Wednesday, also inspected the construction of a third destroyer of the same class as his 5,000-ton warship, the Choe Hyon, first unveiled in April 2025.

Kim has hailed the development of Choe Hyon as a significant advancement toward his goal of expanding the operational range and preemptive strike capabilities of his nuclear-armed military. State media says the ship is designed to handle various weapons systems, including antiair and anti-naval weapons, as well as nuclear-capable ballistic and cruise missiles. South Korean military officials and experts say Choe Hyon was likely built with Russian assistance amid deepening military ties, but some have raised doubts about whether it’s ready for active service.

North Korea unveiled a second destroyer of the same class in May last year, but it was damaged during a botched launching ceremony at the northeastern port of Chongjin, triggering a furious reaction from Kim, who called the failure “criminal.” North Korea has said the new destroyer, named Kang Kon, was relaunched in June after repair, but outside experts have questioned whether the ship is fully operational.

After observing Choe Hyon’s sea trials on Tuesday, Kim said the ship met operational requirements and called it a symbol of the country’s expanding naval capabilities. He called for building two warships a year over the next five years of the same or higher class as the Choe Hyon.

Kim came back Wednesday to observe a test launch of cruise missiles from the Choe Hyon. State media published photos of him watching from shore as several projectiles rose from the vessel in plumes of white smoke and described the weapons as “strategic,” a term used for nuclear-capable systems.

After years of spurring ballistic missile development, Kim has shifted his focus more toward naval capabilities, including an ongoing construction of a nuclear-powered submarine. KCNA said the third destroyer under construction at the Nampo shipyard is expected to be completed by the ruling Workers’ Party’s founding anniversary in October.

Naval capabilities were also a key focus when Kim outlined his five-year military goals at last month’s Workers’ Party congress, which included calls for intercontinental ballistic missiles capable of being launched from underwater.

Kim on Tuesday claimed that his efforts to arm his navy with nuclear weapons were “making satisfactory” progress. He said those purported advancements would “constitute a radical change in defending our maritime sovereignty, something that we have not achieved for half a century.”

KCNA did not elaborate on what Kim meant. Some analysts say North Korea may be preparing to formally declare a maritime boundary that could encroach on waters controlled by rival South Korea.

As inter-Korean tensions worsen, Kim has repeatedly said he does not recognize the Northern Limit Line, drawn by the U.S.-led U.N. Command at the end of the 1950-53 Korean War. The poorly drawn western sea boundary has been the site of several deadly naval clashes in past years.

At the party congress, Kim doubled down on plans to expand North Korea’s nuclear arsenal, which already is equipped with various weapons systems threatening the United States and U.S. allies in Asia, and confirmed his hard-line view of rival South Korea.

But he left the door open for dialogue with the Trump administration, reiterating Pyongyang’s demand that Washington drop its insistence on denuclearization as a precondition for resuming long-stalled talks.

AUSTIN, Texas — A Texas judge declined Wednesday to fully close Camp Mystic — the tragic epicenter of the July 4 floods that inundated the Texas Hill Country last year — but prevented the part of the camp where the deadly flooding occurred from being altered.

State District Judge Maya Guerra Gamble heard evidence in a packed Travis County courtroom in a temporary restraining order and injunction request filed by Will and CiCi Steward, the parents of 8-year-old Cecilia “Cile” Steward, a camper who died in the flooding.

Gamble granted a temporary injunction barring the all-girls summer camp along the Guadalupe River from altering or remodeling any structure where campers were housed during the tragedy.

She also ordered that the old Guadalupe grounds, where the fatal flooding occurred, be sealed off, including the commissary, the rec hall and the main office. However, areas outside of those grounds can proceed with construction.

Twenty-five girls, two counselors and Camp Mystic’s owner were killed in the historic flooding in Kerr County that swamped the camp. Cile’s body has not been recovered.

Over 130 people in the region died in the catastrophe.

The Stewards, who filed a lawsuit against the owners of the camp and the request for a restraining order last month, had asked that Camp Mystic not reopen this summer to campers and that construction and remodeling be halted to preserve evidence at the site.

In their filing, the Stewards argued that remodeling and construction are already underway, even as the search for their daughter’s body continues.

“This application for injunctive relief seeks to preserve the status quo and protect material evidence bearing on how and why Cile Steward lost her life while entrusted to Defendants’ care,” their filing said.

Gamble’s ruling will be in effect while the lawsuit is pending.

Camp Mystic did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The courtroom was packed Wednesday with members of victims’ families.

Edward Eastland, director of the Guadalupe camp at the time, testified as a witness for the defense. He told the court that some buildings have been repaired and remodeled.

Questioned about the tragedy, he said the children did not have walkie-talkies in their cabins, and he said that the camp had security cameras but that no one was watching the feed in the middle of the night when the flooding began.

Brad Beckworth, the Stewards’ attorney, said after the hearing: “Our application for a restraining order was granted in its entirety.

“The only limitation at all to it is how we’re going to deal with commercial activity on the other side of the camp,” he continued. “But to be clear, what the court has ruled is that the Guadalupe River side of Camp Mystic will not be reopening anytime soon until we get through the right evidentiary process towards trial.”

Will Steward praised the judge’s decision, saying: “It was important to know that the judge understood and the court understood that what we’re trying to do is preserve the evidence that’s there so we can understand, so future campers will never be put in a situation like this again.”

Mikal Watts, an attorney representing Camp Mystic and the Eastland family, which owns the camp, said he was “thrilled” with the judge’s decision.

“She agreed that the evidence of the Guadalupe River should be preserved, just like we offered to. … Part of what we’re doing is working tonight on the structural separation to keep kids away from Guadalupe River while they’re attending camp this summer at Cypress Lake. We agreed to do that,” he said.

Watts said 853 campers were signed up as of Tuesday to attend this summer at Mystic’s Cypress Lake location, which it has described as independent from the older Guadalupe camp.

In announcing its reopening plans in December, Camp Mystic said it has taken steps to enhance safety, including installing flood monitoring units.

Last week, families of nine victims of the Camp Mystic floods sued the state, claiming it failed to enforce a requirement that the camp have an evacuation plan.

Also last week, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick sent a letter urging the commissioner of the Department of State Health Services to deny the camp a license to operate until “all legislative investigations are complete and any necessary corrective actions are taken.”

In response to Patrick’s letter, Camp Mystic said last week that its Cypress Lake location is “in compliance with all aspects of the state’s new camp safety laws.” It noted that the Cypress Lake site is not adjacent to the Guadalupe River and that it “sustained no significant damage from the historic flood on July 4.”