DPRK to obliterate South Korea if provoked militarily — Kim Jong Un

TOKYO | TASS | Pursuing a policy of confrontation with Pyongyang is suicidal for Seoul and, in the event of a military provocation, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) will be ready to engage its entire arsenal to eliminate the Republic of Korea (ROK), North Korean leader Kim Jong Un said during a visit to defense industry enterprises.

“If the Republic of Korea attempts to use its armed forces against our state or threaten our sovereignty and security, we will not hesitate to use the entire arsenal of means and forces to completely obliterate the Republic of Korea,” the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) quoted Kim as saying. “Until the gangsters who rule the Republic of Korea realize the errors of the suicidal policy of confrontation with the DPRK, our republic will invariably continue with natural hands-on actions, based on the principles of a fair fight,” he added.

He noted that the DPRK does not intend to “unilaterally” provoke “major events with [its] suppressing force” on the Korean Peninsula but “is not going to avoid a war” either.

On January 5, North Korean coastal artillery units held drills, firing 192 rounds at hypothetical targets in waters near the South Korean islands of Yeonpyeong and Baengnyeongdo but north of the Northern Limit Line (NLL), which Seoul considers the de facto maritime border. In response, South Korea’s armed forces held reciprocal drills, firing about 400 rounds. Seoul noted that the North Korean shells exploded in the buffer zone.

The September 19, 2018 inter-Korean agreement on easing tensions established maritime buffer zones where artillery fire on hypothetical targets is prohibited. Last November, Pyongyang completely rejected the agreement after Seoul stopped observing some of its provisions in response to the launch of a North Korean intelligence satellite.

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Source: Tass