Ο Kim Jong-un stated that his country is ready to use nuclear weapons for deterrence purposes and to counter any attack by the U.S., while also taking aim, for the first time, at South Korea’s new president, warning Seoul against any move that could trigger the outbreak of a new war.
Her leader North Korea was expressed during an event yesterday, Wednesday, July 27, the day marking the 69th anniversary of the armistice that suspended hostilities in the Korean War—from a technical standpoint, the two Koreas remain in a state of war—according to the official North Korean news agency KCNA.
The conflict with the U.S. gave rise to nuclear threats as early as the war period (1950–1953), and this meant that North Korea had an «urgent historical duty» to strengthen its defenses, Mr. Kim said.
«»Our armed forces are (…) prepared to deal with any crisis, and our nuclear deterrent is also fully ready for use« to carry out »with precision and immediacy,” he added.
Officials in Seoul and Washington have recently insisted that North Korea is preparing to conduct a nuclear weapons test, the first since 2017, when Mr. Kim had unilaterally declared a moratorium.
Members of the South Korean government assessed that there was a «possibility» the test would take place on the anniversary of the provisional ceasefire, but a South Korean military official countered that there were no indications that such a test would take place immediately.
The South Korean Foreign Ministry stressed yesterday that North Korea will likely face even stricter international sanctions if it proceeds with a nuclear weapons test.
In his speech yesterday, Mr. Kim emphasized that Washington and Seoul are continuing their «dangerous and illegal hostile acts» against his country and are trying to justify their behavior by «demonizing» his country.
Pyongyang has long accused the U.S. of applying a double standard toward it and of behaving hostilely toward it, which, according to Pyongyang, is preventing the resumption of talks on the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula.
Mr. Kim stressed that Washington is «misleading» the public by portraying «every routine action by our armed forces as a ‘provocation’ and a ‘threat’ while conducting large-scale joint military exercises (with Seoul) that directly threaten our security,» referring to this as «theft.».
«The path chosen by the U.S. and South Korea is »leading relations to a point from which it will be difficult to return—a state of conflict,'" he insisted.
«Ultimate Weapon»
Kim Jong-un also denounced—referring to him by name for the first time— South Korea’s new conservative president, Yoon Suk-yeol, accusing him of threatening his country’s security and right to self-defense.
«War mongers» and «repulsive thugs» in the Yoon administration have set out to continue military activities that could provoke a conflict, the North Korean leader claimed, singling out in particular Seoul’s weapons development and its efforts to bring more U.S. nuclear weapons to the peninsula, as well as joint military exercises.
He insisted that the «odious policy of confrontation» toward North Korea and the new government’s «underhanded and insidious» actions are pushing the situation to the brink of war.
In recent months, North Korea has conducted several tests of hypersonic and other missiles that, according to the country, are capable of carrying nuclear warheads, a development it says minimizes the time Seoul would have to respond to a potential attack.
Mr. Yoon insists that he will complete the system he calls the «Kill Chain,» a military doctrine that calls for preemptive strikes to neutralize Pyongyang’s most important weapons systems and possibly the North Korean leadership if an imminentof an attack.
However, this tactic could never prevent the strikes from North Korea’s «ultimate weapon,» Mr. Kim asserted, without going into further detail.
«If you think you can confront us militarily and preemptively neutralize or destroy part of our military power, any such attempt will be immediately punished with overwhelming force, and the government of Yoon Suk-yeol and his army will be annihilated,» he said.
A spokesperson for South Korea’s Ministry of Defense stated that the country will continue to strengthen its own capabilities, as will the deployment of more U.S. deterrents, including systems to counter nuclear attacks, to address the threat from Pyongyang.
According to Yang Mu-jin, a professor specializing in North Korea at a university in Seoul, Mr. Kim’s statements appear to be intended to emphasize that his country was right to develop a nuclear arsenal and to underscore his approach—summarized by the phrase «an eye for an eye,» toward Washington and Seoul.
