Estimated reading time: 5-6 minutes
SEOUL, South Korea — North Korea’s military said Monday that its recent barrage of missile tests were practices for “mercilessly” hitting key South Korean and U.S. targets, such as air bases and operational command systems, with a variety of missiles likely to include nuclear weapons. The North’s announcement underscored leader Kim Jong Un’s determination not to back down in the face of pressure from his rivals to expand their military exercises. But some experts say Kim has also used their exercises as an excuse to modernize his nuclear arsenal and increase his leverage in future dealings with Washington and Seoul. North Korea fired dozens of missiles and flew warplanes into the sea last week – prompting evacuation alerts in parts of South Korea and Japan – in protest at massive US-South Korean air drills that the North sees as a rehearsal for an invasion. US and South Korean officials responded that they would further step up their joint training events and warned the North that using nuclear weapons would result in the end of the Kim regime. “The recent corresponding military operations by the Korean People’s Army are a clear response by (North Korea) that the more persistent the enemies’ provocative military moves continue, the more thoroughly and mercilessly the KPA will deal with them,” the North’s General Staff said. Korea. the military said in a statement carried by state media. … the more persistently the provocative military movements of the enemies continue, the more thoroughly and mercilessly the KPA will counterattack them.
– General Staff of the North Korean army
It said the weapons tests involved ballistic missiles loaded with cluster warheads and underground penetration warheads intended to deliver strikes on enemy air bases. surface-to-air missiles designed to “destroy” enemy aircraft at different altitudes and distances; and strategic cruise missiles that fell in international waters about 50 miles off South Korea’s southeastern coastal city of Ulsan. The North’s military said it also conducted a major test of a ballistic missile with a special-functioning warhead with the mission of “paralyzing the enemy’s operations management system.” That could mean a simulation of electromagnetic pulse attacks, but some observers doubt whether North Korea has mastered key technologies to acquire such an attack capability. The North’s military statement did not specifically mention Thursday’s reported launch of an intercontinental ballistic missile aimed at hitting the US mainland, although its main newspaper published a photo of an ICBM-like weapon used during last week’s test activities. week. Some experts say many other North Korean missiles fired last week were short-range nuclear weapons that put key military targets in South Korea, including US military bases there, within range. Later on Monday, South Korea’s military disputed some of the North’s accounts of its missile tests. Spokesman Kim Jun-rak said South Korea did not detect the North Korean cruise missile launches and that it was also notable that North Korea did not report what Seoul assessed as an abnormal ICBM flight. This year’s “Vigilant Storm” air force exercises between the United States and South Korea were the largest ever for the annual drop maneuvers. The exercises involved 240 warplanes, including advanced F-35 fighter jets from both countries. The allies were originally supposed to hold the drills for five days ending Friday, but extended the training for another day in response to the North’s missile tests. On Saturday, the final day of Air Force exercises, the United States flew two B-1B supersonic bombers over South Korea in a show of force against North Korea, the first such flight by the aircraft since December 2017. South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said the B-1B’s participation in the joint exercises demonstrated the allies’ readiness to respond sternly to North Korea’s provocations and the US commitment to defend its ally with the full range of its military capabilities, including of nuclear. After their annual meeting Thursday in Washington, U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and South Korean Defense Minister Lee Jong-Sup issued a joint statement strongly condemning the North’s recent launches and carrying Austin’s warning that any nuclear attacks against of the United States or its allies and partners. is unacceptable and will lead to the end of the Kim regime.” South Korea’s military has previously warned the North that using its nuclear weapons would put it on a “path of self-destruction”. Both defense chiefs also agreed on the need to step up joint exercises and training events to enhance preparedness against North Korea’s nuclear and missile threats. Even before the “Vigilant Storm” drills, North Korea fired a series of missiles in what it called simulated nuclear strikes on US and South Korean targets in protest of other military exercises by its rivals that involved US aircraft for the first time. once in five years. In September, North Korea also passed a new law allowing for the preemptive use of its nuclear weapons in a wide range of situations. South Korean and US officials have consistently maintained that their drills are defensive in nature and that they have no intention of invading the North. US and South Korean troops have been expanding their regular drills since the inauguration of conservative South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol in May, who has promised to take a tougher stance against North Korean provocations. Some of the allied exercises have previously been scaled back or canceled to support diplomacy over North Korea’s now-stalled nuclear program or to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic. For months, South Korean and US officials have said North Korea has completed preparations to conduct its first nuclear test in five years. On Monday, South Korean Unification Minister Kwon Youngse told lawmakers that North Korea could conduct a nuclear test at any time, but there were no signs yet that such a test explosion was imminent. The North’s recent weapons tests came as it struggled to overcome difficulties related to the pandemic. Russian officials said last week that they had restarted rail services with North Korea after more than 2½ years of suspension caused by the pandemic. Russian Far Eastern Railway officials told the state-run news agency last Wednesday that the first restarted train bound for North Korea was carrying 30 thoroughbred horses and the next train was to carry medicine. In September, North Korea restarted freight train service with China, its biggest trading partner, ending a five-month hiatus. Contributors: Kim Tong-hyung and Daria Litvinova x
