North Korean leader Kim Jong Un calls for more 'practical, offensive' war deterrence

SEOUL – North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has called for strengthening of the country’s war deterrence in a “more practical and offensive” manner to counter what it called moves of aggression by the United States and South Korea, according to state media KCNA on Tuesday.

Mr Kim made the comment at an enlarged meeting of the Central Military Commission held on Monday to discuss efforts to boost the country’s war deterrence to “cope with the escalating moves of the US imperialists and the South Korean puppet traitors to unleash a war of aggression”, the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said.

North Korea has been

reacting angrily to a recent series of joint military exercises by the allies,

which KCNA said were intended to prepare for “an all-out war” and forced Pyongyang to explore “powerful practical action”, including military options.

Mr Kim ordered further reinforcing of the country’s war deterrence with “increasing speed” and in a “more practical and offensive” manner, KCNA said.

The meeting “discussed practical matters and measures for machinery to prepare various military action proposals (such) that no means and ways of counteraction are available to the enemy”, the state media added.

South Korean and American forces have conducted annual springtime exercises since March, including air and sea drills involving a US aircraft carrier and B-1B and B-52 bombers, and their first large-scale amphibious landing drills in five years.

North Korea has also been carrying out various military activities in recent weeks, unveiling new, smaller nuclear warheads,

testing what it called a nuclear-capable underwater attack drone

as well as firing an intercontinental ballistic missile capable of striking anywhere in the US.

Seoul’s Unification Minister Kwon Young-se, who is in charge of handling cross-border affairs, expressed strong regret on Tuesday over Pyongyang not responding to inter-Korean hotlines since last week, calling it “irresponsible”.

The two Koreas operate border hotlines to prevent unexpected incidents, but the North has often refused to receive messages or daily check-in calls from the South when relations are strained.

“We express strong regret over North Korea’s unilateral and irresponsible attitude, and strongly warn that it will eventually isolate itself and put itself in more difficult circumstances,” Mr Kwon told a news conference.

He also denounced the North for using South Korean assets left at a joint factory park, which Pyongyang unilaterally shut in 2016, without approval, pledging to explore measures to hold it accountable.

Senior defence officials from South Korea and the US were set to hold their annual Korea-US Integrated Defence Dialogue in Washington on Monday and Tuesday, Seoul’s Defence Ministry said. Topics of discussion included joint responses to the North’s nuclear and missile threats and ways of improving the American nuclear umbrella’s execution.

Japan will join trilateral defence talks on Friday. The three countries last week expressed concern over North Korea using “malicious” cyber activities to bankroll its weapons programmes.

On Monday, Japan’s Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirokazu Matsuno told reporters that Pyongyang could stage further provocations, including nuclear tests. REUTERS