North Korea leader Kim threatens nuclear response if sovereignty breached: Report
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North Korean leader Kim Jong Un criticised South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol for threatening to end the North Korean regime.
PHOTO: REUTERS
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SEOUL – North Korean leader Kim Jong Un said the country would not hesitate to use all available offensive forces, including nuclear weapons, if the enemy attempted to use force to encroach on its sovereignty, state news agency KCNA reported on Oct 4.
Mr Kim criticised South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol for threatening to end the North Korean regime at a military day event on Oct 1, saying the comment showed which side was destroying regional security and peace.
Mr Kim said Mr Yoon “bragged about overwhelming counter-action of military muscle at the doorstep of the state possessed of nuclear weapons, and it was a great irony that caused the suspicion of being an abnormal man”, KCNA reported.
“He affirmed that ‘if’ the enemy, seized with extreme foolishness and recklessness, attempt to use armed forces encroaching upon the sovereignty of the DPRK... the DPRK would use without hesitation all the offensive forces it has possessed, including nuclear weapons,” KCNA added.
DPRK is short for the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, North Korea’s official name. KCNA said Mr Kim made the comments at a training base of army special operation units on Oct 2.
North Korea has for decades pursued a nuclear weapons programme and is believed to have enough fissile materials to build dozens of such weapons. It has conducted six underground nuclear detonation tests.
On Oct 1, South Korea marked the annual armed forces day with a military parade showcasing a ballistic missile capable of carrying a massive warhead that also featured a flypast of a US bomber.
In a speech, Mr Yoon warned Pyongyang against using nuclear weapons, saying that would meet “a resolute, overwhelming response from our military and the US alliance”.
Mr Yoon said: “That day will see the end of the North Korean regime.”
Mr Kim said “the enemies’ threatening rhetoric, action, trick and attempt did not check the DPRK’s powerful military strength and will not take away our nuclear weapons forever”, KCNA reported. REUTERS
