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S.Korean Ruling Party Head Calls For Development of National Nuclear Arms

CC0 / / Nuclear mushroom
Nuclear mushroom - Sputnik International, 1920, 20.02.2023
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MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Seoul should consider acquiring its own nuclear capabilities to successfully deter a threat posed by Pyongyang, if the current measures are not sufficient enough to effectively respond to it, Chung Jin-suk, the leader of the South Korean ruling People Power Party (PPP), said on Monday.

"We need to seriously consider developing our own nuclear capabilities if such a response [to North Korea's nuclear threats using Seoul's existent deterrence system] is insufficient," Chung said at a party meeting.

Artist's conception of a hypersonic missile during its launch phase. - Sputnik International, 1920, 14.02.2023
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So far, South Korea has relied on the so-called three-axis deterrence system to deal with North Korea's missile threats. The system includes the Kill Chain strategy implying preemptive strikes against Pyongyang, the Korea Massive Punishment and Retaliation program, which targets North Korea's leadership in case of its attack against the neighboring state, as well as the Korea Air and Missile Defense system.

"We have a clear option on North Korea's nuclear weapons. We must first secure a concrete nuclear deterrence... We need to strengthen our Kill Chain so North Korea can never rise to its feet again if it uses nukes on the Korean Peninsula," the PPP leader was quoted by media as saying.

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida told reporters earlier in the day that, following Pyongyang's Saturday ICBM launch and the Monday test-firing of two ballistic missiles, Japan had requested an extraordinary meeting of the UN Security Council.
On Saturday, North Korea test-fired the Hwasong-15 intercontinental ballistic missile. Earlier on Monday, Pyongyang also conducted a test launch of two short-range ballistic missiles toward the Sea of Japan in response to the joint US-South Korea drills completed on Sunday.
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