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Kim Jong-un has ordered his troops to prepare for an ‘immediate and overwhelming’ nuclear counterattack against his enemies – as he accused the US of holding aggressive military drills with South Korea.
He warned that North Korea was ready to launch just hours after commanding his own ‘guided’ military exercises – which included firing a ballistic missile with a mock nuclear warhead.
Jong-un said the exercises improved the military’s actual war capability and highlighted the need to ensure its readiness posture for any imminent nuclear warfare the country may need to unfurl against its enemies.
The North Korean leader was accompanied by his nine-year-old daughter Kim Ju Ae during the missile tests – continuing a trend that has led to speculation the young girl is being lined up to inherit the hereditary hermit kingdom.
State media, KCNA, said on Monday that the missile launch and accompanying military exercises on Saturday and Sunday were aimed at bolstering North Korea’s ‘war deterrence and nuclear counterattack capability’.
He made specific reference to the ‘reckless’ and ‘aggressive’ behaviors of his enemies – in this instance, the US and South Korea.
Kim Jong Un is accompanied by his nine-year-old daughter, Kim Ju Ae, as he watches missile launches on Sunday
Kim and his daughter are seen walking together towards the site of the missile launch, in a photo released on Monday
In the exercises, a ballistic missile equipped with a mock nuclear warhead flew 500 miles before hitting a target at the altitude of 800m under the scenario of a tactical nuclear attack, KCNA said.
‘The present situation, in which the enemies are getting ever more pronounced in their moves for aggression against the DPRK, urgently requires the DPRK to bolster up its nuclear war deterrence exponentially,’ KCNA quoted him as saying.
Kim was using the acronym of his country’s official name, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.
‘The nuclear force of the DPRK will strongly deter, control and manage the enemy’s reckless moves and provocations with its high war readiness, and carry out its important mission without hesitation in case of any unwanted situation,’ he added.
The drills make the North Korean army ‘familiar with any unexpected circumstances and make them more perfectly prepared in their active posture of making an immediate and overwhelming nuclear counterattack [at] anytime.’
KCNA said more than 1.4 million North Koreans have volunteered to join or re-enlist in the military to fight against Seoul and Washington, up from some 800,000 reported by a state newspaper just two days before.
South Korea and Japan on Sunday reported a launch of a North Korean short-range ballistic missile off the east coast – the latest in a series of missile tests in recent weeks.
Missiles were launched on Tuesday, Thursday and again at the weekend.
Sunday’s missile launched from the North’s northwestern region flew across the country before it landed in the waters off its east coast, South Korea‘s Joint Chiefs of Staff said in a statement.
It said South Korea’s military has boosted its surveillance posture and maintains a readiness in close coordination with the United States.
Sunday’s ICBM test launch is pictured by North Korean state media, in a photo published on Monday
The missile launch is at least the third since the US and South Korea began military exercises last week: other tests were carried out on Tuesday and Thursday
Trails from the missile launch are seen on Sunday in the skies above North Korea
A TV screen shows file footage of North Korea’s missile launch during a news program at the Yongsan Railway Station in Seoul. North Korea fired a short-range ballistic missile (SRBM) towards the East Sea on Sunday
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un watches on Thursday what it says is an intercontinental ballistic missile test, launched at the Sunan international airport in Pyongyang
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, right, is pictured witnessing the launch of a Hwasong-17 intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) from Pyongyang International Airport on Thursday
Japan‘s Defense Ministry and coast guard said what appeared to be a North Korean missile was fired Sunday morning.
It said the suspected weapon landed outside Japan’s exclusive economic zone. There were no immediate reports of damage in the area.
South Korea’s Yonhap news agency cited the South’s military as saying that North Korea had fired a ballistic missile toward its eastern waters.
The launch was North Korea’s third round of weapons tests since the US and South Korean militaries began their joint military drills last week.
Earlier this month, Kim’s sister warned that it would be a ‘clear declaration of war’ if North Korean missiles were shot down during their test launches over the Pacific Ocean.
‘It will be regarded as a clear declaration of war against the DPRK, in case such military response as interception takes place against our tests of strategic weapons,’ said Kim Yo Jong on March 6.
‘The Pacific Ocean does not belong to the dominium of the U.S. or Japan.’
North Korea has reacted furiously to South Korea-U.S. combined military drills, calling them a rehearsal for invasion against it.
The allies have been carrying out a multitude of their annual exercises since earlier this month, including air and sea drills on Sunday involving U.S. B-1B strategic bombers.
Kim Yo Jong, the powerful sister of Kim Jong Un, on March 6 warned any attempts to intercept missile testing by US or South Korea will be considered an act of war
People watch the news at a station in Seoul, South Korea, on Sunday
A woman walks past a television on Sunday showing a news broadcast with file footage of a North Korean missile test
This picture released by North Korea’s official Korean Central News Agency shows the launch of a Hwasong-17 intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) at Pyongyang International Airport on Thursday
At the beginning of this month North Korea’s foreign ministry accused the United States of ‘intentionally’ ramping up tensions.
‘The recent joint air drill… clearly shows that the US scheme to use nuclear weapons against the DPRK is being carried forward at the level of an actual war,’ it said in a statement published by KCNA.
‘We express deep regret over the irresponsible and worrying muscle-flexing of the US and South Korea.’
Their anger is only set to increase.
On Monday, the U.S. and South Korea navies and marine corps are set to kick off their first large-scale Ssangyong amphibious landing exercises in five years, with a two-week run which will continue until April 3.
In February, the two countries staged tabletop exercises simulating North Korea’s nuclear attack.
South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol has pushed for more confidence in U.S. extended deterrence – its military capability, especially nuclear forces, to deter attacks on its allies.
Known as Freedom Shield, the drills started Monday and are set to run for 10 days.
The Freedom Shield exercises focus on the ‘changing security environment’ due to North Korea’s redoubled aggression, the allies have said.
North Korea views all such drills as rehearsals for invasion and has repeatedly warned it would take ‘overwhelming’ action in response.
The launch overshadowed the summit between Yoon and his Japanese counterpart, Fumio Kishida.
At the meeting, both leaders agreed to resume defense dialogue and further strengthen their three-way security cooperation with the US.
Photo provided by the North Korean government shows what it says is an intercontinental ballistic missile in a launching drill at the Sunan international airport in Pyongyang on Thursday
Thursday’s launch was North Korea’s third show of force since Sunday and took place as South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol headed to Tokyo for a summit with Japan’s Prime Minister Fumio Kishida
Pictured: Kim Jong Un and his daughter, believed to be aged nine, are seen watching Thursday’s missile launch on North Korea in pictures released by state media
Kim’s daughter (right) has appeared at several events tied to his military since first being showcased at a missile test launch in November. She is pictured with him on March 9
Kim and his daughter are seen together overseeing military drills on March 9
The summit comes after Yoon’s government took a major step toward improving bilateral ties strained by historical grievances.
It announced plans last week to use local funds to compensate Koreans who had won damages in court against Japanese companies that enslaved them before the end of World War II.
Yoon’s plan was widely criticized at home, where many South Koreans harbor deep resentment toward Japan over its brutal colonial rule of the Korea Peninsula from 1910 to 1945.
Yoon said dramatic steps were necessary to improve ties with Tokyo as he pushes to strengthen South Korea’s defense in conjunction with its alliance with the US.
‘The ever-escalating threat of North Korea’s nuclear missile program poses a huge threat to peace and stability not only in East Asia but also to the (broader) international community,’ Yoon said.
‘South Korea and Japan need to work closely together and in solidarity to wisely counter the threat.’
North Korea has long portrayed regular U.S.-South Korean military drills as rehearsals for a potential invasion, although the allies describe those exercises as defensive.
Many experts say North Korea uses its rivals’ drills as a pretext to aggressively expand its nuclear arsenal and overall military capability.
They said it seeks to force the U.S. government to accept the North’s status as a nuclear power and to negotiate on issues of economic sanctions from a position of strength.
Besides the ICBM, the North has test-fired cruise missiles from a submarine and fired short-range missiles into the sea since last week, attempting to show it could conduct potential nuclear strikes on both South Korean targets and the U.S. mainland.
A ballistic missile is pictured being launched from an undisclosed location in North Korea, February 20
A missile is displayed during a military parade to mark the 75th founding anniversary of North Korea’s army, February 8
Earlier this month, scientists in Beijing simulated the ICBM launch and said they believe Pyongyang would be able to hit the United States, should their defense fail to intercept the missile.
The team of scientists from the Beijing Institute of Electronic System Engineering said North Korea’s nuclear-capable Hwasong-15 missile with a range of over 8,000 miles (around 13,000 km) would be ‘sufficient to hit the entire US homeland’.
The simulation also suggested that there were gaps in the U.S. nuclear defense armory.
The scientists said their tests showed the existing US missile defense network had gaps in its ‘kill chain’ and would struggle to identify and defend against an attack.
The new research and simulation published by China’s top institute for aerospace defense was led by scientist Tang Yuyan and released in the Modern Defence Technology Journal for February.
The simulation started with a launch from Sunchon, a North Korean city south of capital Pyongyang, and targeted Columbia in Missouri. The specific location was selected for its centrality in the middle of America.
Running the tests, the team said a theoretical launch would cause the U.S. to receive an alert 20 seconds later.
Within 11 minutes, the U.S.’s nuclear defense would fall into action as intercepting missiles would blast out of Fort Greely in Alaska’s Southeast Fairbanks Census Area.]
A second phase of missiles would then launch Vandenberg Space Force Base in California should the first defense fail.
Tang’s team said the U.S. defense was impressive but they said the simulation identified some gaps in the ‘kill chain’ that a nation such as North Korea could exploit.
The study claimed that the reason for the research was to evaluate the effectiveness of U.S. nuclear defense capabilities.
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