On Wednesday, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un announced North Korea’s military is prepared to fight the U.S. military and annihilate the “regime” of South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol.
Kim spoke during a celebration of the 69th anniversary of the armistice that ended the fighting of the Korean War on July 27, 1953. After praising the North Korean military for handing the U.S. a “defeat” in the Korean War, Kim said North Korea must still confront the U.S.
“The arrogant nature of the U.S. imperialists has remained unchanged as ever,” Kim said, according to the South Korean KCNA Watch which records and translates news and broadcasts from the North Korean state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).
“We must confront the U.S. imperialists to the end on the strength of ideology and arms,” Kim continued. “I reaffirm that the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea is thoroughly prepared to cope with any kind of military clashes with the United States. If the United States continuously attempts to impair the image of our state and make a serious infringement of our security and fundamental interests, it will only compel itself to put up with greater uneasiness and crises.”
Kim went on to threaten the politically conservative government of Yoon Suk Yeol, who took office on May 10.
“The government of our Republic would like to take this opportunity to send a serious warning to the south Korean conservative regime and its hawks that run amuck, indulged in abnormal excessive covetousness and confidence in strength, and stand in the van of implementing the U.S.’s hostile policy towards the [Democratic People’s Republic of Korea],” Kim said.
North Korea refers to itself as the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) and refers to South Korea with a lowercase “south” because it aspires to reunite the entire Korean Peninsula and considers the peninsula as one country that is momentarily divided.
“The new south Korean regime has designated our government and army as their ‘archenemy’ and, obsessed with useless fear that they must prepare themselves to confront their fellow countrymen, are raising the pitch of their malicious voices and resorting to all sorts of evil and inappropriate acts,” Kim continued. They are brazen-faced enough to advocate ‘peace based on strength’ and ‘security based on strength,’ and have put up a bold front, claiming that they would not hesitate in launching a ‘preemptive strike’ to neutralize the war deterrent of our state.”
Kim said the Yoon government should rethink any potential plans to strike North Korea.
“Such a dangerous attempt will be punished at once by a powerful force and Yoon Suk Yeol regime and its army will be annihilated,” Kim said. “The conservative regime of south Korea must admit before it’s too late that it has already gone too far from its beginning, and that it should think seriously upon the actions that may invite danger to itself.”
Last year, Yoon said he would request that the U.S. redeploy tactical nuclear weapons in South Korea if the U.S. determines there’s a credible threat from North Korea. In May, after taking office, he and President Joe Biden agreed to expand the scope of joint U.S. and South Korean military drills and “identify new or additional steps to reinforce deterrence in the face of DPRK destabilizing activities.”
