03/20/2023 06:36 (act. 03/20/2023 06:40)
Dictator Kim led the blockade country maneuvers ©APA/AFP
According to state media, North Korean ruler Kim Jong-un led a military maneuver to “simulate a nuclear counterattack” over the weekend. North Korea’s state news agency KCNA reported on Monday that this included the launch of a missile equipped with a dummy nuclear warhead.
Kim expressed his “satisfaction” with the exercises, which were carried out “to familiarize relevant entities with the procedures and processes to implement their mission of tactical nuclear strike”, KCNA said.
The drills were Pyongyang’s fourth show of power in a week as part of a joint US-South Korean maneuver that began last Monday. The biggest military exercise in five years is expected to last until Thursday.
Pyongyang sees the maneuvers as preparation for an invasion of North Korea and has repeatedly threatened “overwhelming measures”.
The maneuvers on Saturday and Sunday included exercises simulating the transition to a nuclear counterattack position and an exercise to “launch a tactical ballistic missile armed with a simulated nuclear warhead,” according to KCNA. “The missile was armed with a test warhead that replicated a nuclear warhead,” the agency said later, without elaborating.
According to the South Korean General Staff, the short-range missile launched by North Korea fell into the sea. He spoke of a “serious provocation” that violated UN sanctions and announced an investigation by US and South Korean secret services.
Seoul and Washington have increased their defense cooperation in response to North Korea’s growing military and nuclear threats.