North Korea released photos of what appear to be tactical nuclear warheads for the first time on Tuesday, sparking concern in Washington and Seoul about Pyongyang’s widening weapons arsenal.

The regime of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has long claimed to have tactical nukes, although it has not previously shown them in public or released photos of them.

State-controlled media in Pyongyang circulated photos Tuesday of Mr. Kim inspecting a row of small nuclear warheads. South Korea’s official Yonhap News Agency reported that the photos “showed around 10 tactical nuclear warheads”, called Hwasan-31, for the first time.

The images apparently sought to show that North Korea “could put such warheads on super-large multiple rocket launchers or cruise missiles targeting South Korea,” the news agency reported.

The BBC reported that it is impossible to verify whether the warheads shown in the photos “are the real deal,” as North Korea has not previously tested a tactical nuclear weapon.

Tuesday’s development came against a backdrop of joint South Korean and U.S. military exercises that the Kim regime claims are being carried out as practice for an invasion of North Korea.

The regime often responds to the regular exercises with missile tests and other provocations of its own.

• Guy Taylor can be reached at gtaylor@washingtontimes.com.