SEOUL, South Korea – North Korean leader Kim Jong Un said his military should “completely destroy” the United States and South Korea if provoked, state media reported Monday, after he vowed to boost the country’s defenses to face what he called an unprecedented U.S. – leading the confrontation.
North Korea has stepped up its belligerent rhetoric in recent months in response to the expansion of US-South Korean military exercises.
Experts expect Kim to continue to increase his rhetoric and weapons tests as he may believe he can use rising tensions to wrest US concessions if former President Donald Trump wins the US presidential election in November.
In a five-day ruling party meeting last week, Kim said he would launch three more military spy satellites, produce more nuclear material and develop attack drones this year in what observers say is an attempt to increase his influence in future diplomacy with the US.
Kim has promised to improve North Korea’s national security. KCNA VIA KNS/AFP via Getty Images
In Sunday’s meeting with military officials, Kim said it was important to sharpen the “precious sword” to safeguard national security, an apparent reference to his country’s nuclear weapons program.
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He cited “confrontational movements of the US military and other enemy forces,” according to the official Korean Central News Agency.
Kim stressed that “our military should strike a fatal blow to destroy them comprehensively by deploying all the most difficult means and potentials without hesitation” if they choose military confrontation and provocation against North Korea, KCNA said.
In his New Year’s address Monday, South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol said he would strengthen its military’s early strike, missile defense and retaliatory capabilities in response to North Korea’s nuclear threat.
“The Republic of Korea is building a genuine, lasting peace through strength, not a submissive peace that depends on the goodwill of the enemy,” Yoon said, using South Korea’s official name.
At a party meeting, Kim called South Korea a “hemiplegic cripple and colonial subordinate country” whose society was “tainted by Yankee culture.”
He said his military must use all available means including nuclear weapons to “suppress the entire territory of South Korea” in the event of a conflict.
South Korea’s Defense Ministry warned in response on Sunday that if North Korea tried to use nuclear weapons, the South Korean and US military would punish it severely, resulting in the end of Kim’s rule.
North Korea has launched more than 100 missiles since 2022. AP
KCNA said North Korean officials held talks on Monday to implement an order by Kim to dissolve or reform organizations that handle relations with South Korea to change the principles and direction of the North’s struggle against the South.
There was no immediate explanation of how it might change inter-Korean relations, which have been at a standstill for a long period.
Experts say small-scale military skirmishes between North and South Korea could occur this year along their heavily armed border.
They said North Korea is also expected to test an intercontinental ballistic missile capable of reaching the US mainland and other major new weapons.
In 2018-19, Kim met Trump in three rounds of talks on North Korea’s nuclear weapons development.
The diplomacy collapsed after the US rejected Kim’s offer to dismantle his main nuclear complex, a limited move, in exchange for a broad reduction in US-led sanctions.
Since 2022, North Korea has conducted more than 100 missile tests, prompting the US and South Korea to expand their joint military exercises.
North Korea plans to launch three spy satellites in 2024. KCNA VIA KNS/AFP via Getty Images
North Korea is also trying to strengthen its ties with China and Russia, which is blocking efforts by the US and its partners in the UN Security Council to toughen UN sanctions on North Korea over its weapons tests.
KCNA said Kim and Chinese President Xi Jinping exchanged New Year’s Day messages on Monday to strengthen bilateral ties.
North Korea faces suspicions that it has supplied conventional weapons to Russia’s war in Ukraine in return for advanced Russian technology to boost the North’s military program.
Estimates of the size of North Korea’s nuclear arsenal vary, ranging from about 20-30 bombs to over 100.
Many foreign experts say North Korea still has several technological hurdles to overcome to produce a functioning nuclear-armed ICBM, although its short-range nuclear-capable missiles can reach South Korea and Japan.
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
