Seoul, Oct. 12 (BNA): North Korean leader Kim Jong Un showcased powerful missiles developed to launch nuclear strikes on the US mainland, vowing to build an “indomitable” army to counter what he called persistent US hostility, according to state media. I reported Tuesday.
In an apparently persistent attempt to drive a wedge between Washington and Seoul, Kim also used his speech at a rare exhibition of weapons systems on Monday to stress that his military power is not targeting South Korea and that there should be no more war. The Associated Press (AP) reported that the Koreans are against each other.
“The United States has repeatedly indicated that it is not hostile to our country, but there is no evidence based on the measures that makes us believe that it is not hostile,” Kim was quoted by the official Korean Central News Agency as saying on Monday. “The United States continues to create tensions in the region with its wrong judgments and actions.”
Describing the United States as a “source” of instability on the Korean peninsula, Kim said his country’s most important goal is to have an “indomitable military capability” that no one could dare to challenge.
The fair, which the Korean Central News Agency says was intended to mark the 76th anniversary of the ruling Workers’ Party on Sunday, was the first of its kind since Kim took power in late 2011, according to officials in Seoul. North Korean photos showed Kim, dressed in a dark suit, walking a red carpet lined with large truck-mounted missiles, passing a multiple missile launch system and watching planes fly in formation.
Experts said the exhibition featured a range of newly developed weapons, including the ICBMs that North Korea had already test-fired or demonstrated during military parades in recent years.
Yang Wook, a military expert who teaches at South Korea’s Hannam University, said the weapons in the photos include what appears to be a new ICBM that North Korea revealed during a military parade last year but did not test-fire it, Yang said. Mounted on an 11-axis launch vehicle during the show, this missile is North Korea’s largest ICBM to date.
Other weapons on display include other ICBMs that North Korea tested in 2017; ballistic missiles that can be launched from submarines or trains; short-range solid-fueled missiles; An upgraded hypersonic missile underwent its first test flight last month, said Lee Chun-gyun, a missile expert at South Korea’s Institute of Science and Technology Policy.
“Basically, North Korea wants to send this message: ‘We will continue to develop new weapons and arm ourselves with nuclear power, so don’t impose sanctions on these weapons because we can’t agree on double standards,'” Yang said.
Seoul’s Defense Ministry said South Korean and US intelligence authorities were analyzing the North Korean weapons on display, but gave no details.
In recent weeks, North Korea has sent mixed signals toward its rivals, resuming missile tests after a six-month hiatus, but offering conditional talks with South Korea.
“I say again that South Korea is not the country that our military forces have to fight,” Kim said. Certainly, we are not strengthening our defense capacity because of South Korea. We must not repeat the terrible history of the compatriots using force against each other.”
Some experts say North Korea is trying to use South Korea’s desire to improve relations to pressure it into persuading the United States to ease economic sanctions on North Korea and make other concessions.
North Korea has long sought improved relations with the United States because it wants sanctions relief and a better security environment to focus on reviving its moribund economy. High-risk diplomacy between the two countries collapsed in early 2019 after the Americans rejected North Korea’s calls for widespread sanctions relief in exchange for partial disarmament steps.
The United States has repeatedly offered recently to hold talks with North Korea “anywhere, anytime” without preconditions. Kim called such an offer a “cunning” attempt to hide US hostility to North Korea, as he wants Washington to ease sanctions or suspend regular military exercises with Seoul first before resuming talks.
Despite his recent missile tests, Kim still maintained a 2018 moratorium on long-range missile tests directly targeting the American homeland, a sign that he still wanted to preserve live opportunities for future talks with Washington.
In 2017, North Korea conducted three intercontinental missile tests and claimed it had acquired the ability to attack the mainland United States with nuclear missiles. Lee, the expert, questioned North Korea’s claim, saying it needed to conduct several other flight tests to prove it had overcome the last remaining technological hurdles such as protecting a warhead from extreme heat and pressure after re-entering Earth’s atmosphere. .
RAE