North Korea: Kim Jong Un threatens to ‘destroy’ South Korea again

The threat is far from new, but it is no less alarming. Visiting several munitions factories with senior party and military officials on Monday and Tuesday, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un said Pyongyang’s priority should be “strengthening military capabilities,” primarily self-defense and nuclear deterrence.

Footage broadcast by state media showed the North Korean leader, wearing a long black leather jacket, standing in front of what analysts said was a short-range ballistic missile launcher believed to be capable of carrying nuclear weapons.

“The historical moment has finally arrived when we must identify (South Korea) as the state most hostile to (North Korea),” Kim Jong Un further assured, calling the country the “main enemy.” North Korea will not “unilaterally” inflame the conflict, North Korea’s number one said, according to the official KCNA news agency, but also “does not intend to avoid war.”

The statements follow recent artillery drills by the North Korean military near the disputed maritime border, which prompted evacuation orders and counter-terrorism exercises.

“Destroy without hesitation” South Korea

Technically, the two Koreas are still at war since the end of the conflict in 1953, which ended in an armistice rather than a peace treaty. For more than 70 years, the peninsula has experienced alternating periods of heightened tension and relative relaxation. Their relationship is currently at its lowest point in decades.

The maneuvers, which began Friday, represent one of the most significant escalations in tensions between the two sides since 2010, when Pyongyang bombed Yeonpyeong Island, killing four people.

“If (South Korea) dares to try to use (its) armed forces against (North Korea) or threaten its sovereignty and security (…), we will not hesitate to destroy (South Korea) by mobilizing all means and forces” in our domains,” warned Kim Jong-un, the official agency said.

The comments mark a shift in North Korean policy and suggest Pyongyang will take a “much tougher stance” toward Seoul in the future, Hong Min of the Korea Development Institute told AFP. “This is the first time the North has described the South asmain enemyThis means that North Korea’s approach to Seoul is moving towards an ultra-aggressive regime,” he added.