North Korea denounced on Monday the visit to South Korea of the NATO Secretary General, Jens Stoltenbergand said that it is a “prelude to confrontation and war”.
“It will be useless for NATO, synonymous with war and confrontation, to put its military boots on the region. This trip is a prelude to confrontation and war, since brings the dark clouds of a new Cold War to the Asia-Pacific region”said North Korean researcher Kim Tong-myong, in an article published today by the state agency KCNA.
In the text, Kim pointed out that this visit is part of the “persistent attempts by NATO to expand its sphere of influence” and he pointed to the Madrid summit last June, in which Japan and South Korea participated for the first time, as an example of this.
“NATO, which defined Russia as ‘the biggest and most direct threat’ and China as a ‘systematic challenge’, is now openly extending its long arm towards South Korea and Japan. Its objective is quite clear,” added the researcher.
Pyongyang’s response comes a day after Stoltenberg will arrive in Seoul for a two-day official visit. and met on Sunday with South Korean Foreign Minister Park Jin-in, with whom he condemned North Korea’s arms support for Russia.
“I think in a more unpredictable and uncertain worldit is even more important that countries that believe in freedom and democracy in a rules-based international order stick together,” Stoltenberg said on Sunday.
During his two-day stay in Seoul, Stoltenberg will meet with South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol and other members of the country’s government before traveling to Japan on Monday.
“Our visit is an expression of the great importance we attach to the partnership between South Korea and NATO and there are many areas where we truly believe that an even stronger partnership can be mutually beneficial,” Stoltenberg noted.