North Korea on Sunday moved to condemn South Korea’s defense minister over remarks regarding Seoul’s reported ability to swiftly strike “any target in North Korea.”
Kim Jong Yo, the sister of North Korean Leader Kim Jong Un, argued that South Korean Defense Minister Suh Wook’s comments “further worsened the inter-Korean relations and military tension on the Korean peninsula,” per a statement issued by state news media KCNA.
Days prior, Suh claimed that Seoul would actively support its military to ensure it has the capability to deliver a robust and overwhelming response to North Korean missile threats.
At the time, the defense minister referred to the northern country as its “enemy.”
Kim, who also serves as vice department director of the Central Committee of the Workers’ Party of Korea, noted that Pyongyang will have to “reconsider a lot of things” and that Seoul “may face a serious threat” as a result of verbally flexing its military capabilities.
Pak Jong Chon, secretary of the Central Committee of the Workers’ Party of Korea, asserted that North Korea, in the event of a preemptive strike, “will mercilessly direct all its military force into destroying major targets in Seoul and the South Korean army.”
On Friday, the US imposed sanctions on five entities accused of providing support to the North Korean development of ballistic missiles and other possible weapons of mass destruction.
Heightened tensions come alongside the forthcoming transfer of presidential power from South Korean President Moon Jae-in to President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol.
Yoon has previously claimed that a preemptive strike may be South Korea’s only hope in effectively countering Pyongyang’s new hypersonic missiles. The president-elect also supports Seoul strengthening its relationship with the US and North Korea through a permanent three-way dialogue channel.
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