North Korea’s Ministry of National Defence issued a stark warning to the US over the spy planes that were allegedly spotted intruding its airspace. It threatened to destroy the aircraft.
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It also condemned Washington’s plans to deploy a nuclear missile submarine near the Korean peninsula threatening a full-scale nuclear conflict.
US media earlier reported that Pyongyang’s technological advancements in developing lethal weapons made the Pentagon worried.
Experts in the region also fear further confrontation while South Korea’s President Yoon Suk Yeol is set to attend a NATO summit in Lithuania this week to discuss North Korea’s growing nuclear and missile threats.
Meanwhile, Kim Jong-un is allegedly using this bizarre method to ensure 'survival of the Kim family' while sources claimhe might not have a son to take over his rule in the future.
He is also told to ban suicide in his country.
North Korea vows to punish US for spycraft
North Korea’s Ministry of National Defence slammed the Pentagon for ‘intensified espionage activities beyond the wartime level’ citing ‘provocative’ flights made by US spy aircraft and allegedly violating their airspace over eight straight days this month.
The North Korean officials threatened to shoot down the intruders and warned the US would pay for its ‘frantically staged’ air espionage.
They also condemned Washington’s plans to deploy a nuclear missile submarine near the Korean peninsula as ‘the most undisguised nuclear blackmail’, saying it posed a grave threat to regional and global security.
The ministry’s spokesperson said:
The present situation clearly proves that the situation of the Korean peninsula is coming closer to the threshold of nuclear conflict due to the US provocative military action.
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South Korea seeks closer ties with NATO
Earlier this year Washington announced that it would send a nuclear-armed ballistic submarineto make the first visit to a neighbouring South Korean port in decades, although the exact timing wasn't specified.
But the latest confrontation prompted a wave of reaction in Seoul.
Local media fear that it could lead to a nuclear conflict while the official Korean Central News Agency said ‘there is no guarantee’ that North Korea wouldn’t resort to ‘downing’ the US aircraft over the East Sea.
South Korea’s President Yoon Suk Yeol is seeking closer ties with Washington, staging joint military exercises with advanced stealth jets and high-profile US strategic assets.
The leader will attend the NATO summit in Lithuania later this week to discuss North Korea’s growing nuclear and missile threats.
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Sources used:
- France 24: 'North Korea threatens to shoot down US spy planes violating its airspace'
- The New York Times: 'Why North Korea’s Latest Nuclear Claims Are Raising Alarms'