North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has urged his country to be ready to launch a nuclear attack to deter war, according to state media, as he accused the US and South Korea of conducting military exercises using American nuclear weapons.
Kim’s comments, which were circulated by state media KCNA, came after the Hermit Kingdom fired a short-range ballistic missile toward the sea on Sunday. The missile flew over the country and landed in the sea off its east coast, according to South Korean and Japanese estimates – who reported the missile traveled a distance of about 500 miles.
FILE: North Korean leader Kim Jong Un attends the 7th expanded plenary session of the 8th Central Committee of the Workers’ Party of Korea (WPK) in Pyongyang, North Korea March 1, 2023 in this photo released by Korea’s North Korea Central News Agency (KCNA). (KCNA via Portal)
Kim, who oversaw the test, said the drills enhanced the military’s actual war capability and stressed the need to ensure its readiness for any “imminent and overwhelming nuclear counterattack” through such drills.
KCNA quoted Kim as saying the North “urgently” needs to increase its nuclear war deterrence exponentially as enemies “become more vocal in their attempts at aggression against” his country.
THE US AND ITS PARTNERS CONDUCT WAR EXERCISE WHILE JAPAN AND SOUTH KOREA STRENGTHEN THE ALLIANCE AGAINST CHINA AND NORTH KOREA
“DPRK’s nuclear-armed forces will strongly deter, control and manage the enemy’s reckless movements and provocations with its high level of war readiness, and carry out its important mission without hesitation in the event of any adverse situation,” Kim was quoted as saying.
KCNA photos showed Kim attending the test with his young daughter as flames erupted from the high-flying missile before it hit the target.
FILE: A television screen shows a newscast featuring footage of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in Pyongyang at Seoul Railway Station in Seoul, South Korea on December 27, 2022. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man, File )
The US and South Korea have been conducting annual drills for weeks, including air and sea exercises with US B-1B strategic bombers. Both countries’ respective navies and marine corps will launch their first large-scale Ssangyong amphibious landing exercises in five years on Monday for a two-week run ending April 3. North Korea has often condemned these drills, likening them to a dress rehearsal for an invasion.
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In another release, KCNA said more than 1.4 million North Koreans have volunteered or re-enlisted to fight against South Korean and US troops — up from around 800,000 recruits reported over the weekend.
Fox News’ Anders Hagstrom contributed to this report.