North Korea passed a law authorizing pre-emptive nuclear strikes | Kim Jong-un doubles down amid rising tensions on the Korean Peninsula

by time news

North Korea passed a law authorizing the launch of pre-emptive nuclear strikes. and declares its atomic weapons program “irreversible,” state media reported on Friday.

The announcement comes amid rising tensions on the Korean peninsula, where Pyongyang carried out an unprecedented series of weapons tests this year and blamed Seoul for the outbreak of covid-19 on its territory.

“We will never give up nuclear weapons and there is absolutely no denuclearization and no negotiations and no bargaining chips in the process,” North Korean leader Kim Jong-un said in a speech to the Supreme National Assembly, the country’s legislative body. , which is holding a series of sessions this week.

During his speech, published in full by the state newspaper RodongKim said that nuclear weapons are “the great pride of the Korean people” and that as long as there are atomic weapons and maneuvers that threaten the security of his country, “our path towards strengthening our nuclear force will not end.”

Irreversible

“By enacting the policy on nuclear forcesthe status of our country as a nuclear State has become irreversible“said the North Korean leader, who assured that the regulations have a dissuasive objective and that his country cannot give up its nuclear weapons because it must “prospectively control the United States.”

Kim accused Washington of trying to overthrow the North Korean regime through “nuclear blackmail.”pressuring him through sanctions to abandon his atomic development, and described this Washington approach as “an error of judgment and calculation” that will not take effect “not even in hundreds of years.”

We do not waive the right to legitimate defense (…) to escape the hardships we are experiencing now,” Kim said, calling the drift of Pyongyang’s nuclear policy “a legal demand of the current situation.”

The law approved by the Supreme National Assembly contemplates the creation of “nuclear forces” that “will be composed of different types of nuclear warheads, vectors (carriers), the command, control system and all personnel, and the equipment and facilities for the operation and updating of the system” , according to details published by the state news agency KCNA.

The promulgated text allows the North to launch a preventive nuclear attack “automatically” and “immediately destroy hostile forces” if a foreign force poses an imminent threat to Pyongyang, the official KCNA news agency said.

In July, Kim assured that the country was “prepared to mobilize” its nuclear capabilities in an eventual war against the United States and South Korea. In addition, he reiterated that they would never dispense with the necessary nuclear weapons to counter the hostility of the United States, which, according to what he said, seeks to “collapse” its power at any moment.

Non-negotiable

The new law shows Kim’s confidence in his country’s military and nuclear capabilities, including intercontinental ballistic missiles capable of reaching the United States, he said. Cheong Seong-changof Center for North Korean Studies at the Sejong Institute. The law “openly justifies Pyongyang’s use of nuclear power” in the event of a military confrontation, including in response to non-atomic attacks, Cheong added.

North Korea has launched a record series of military tests since January, including the first full-range intercontinental ballistic missile since 2017. The United States and South Korea have repeatedly warned that Pyongyang is preparing what would be its seventh nuclear test.

Despite his tougher stances on Pyongyang, the new South Korean president, Yoon Suk-yeol, offered last month an aid plan for the northern neighbor in exchange for an abandonment of the nuclear program. But the communist regime rejected the proposal, saying it was “the height of absurdity” and ruled out a negotiation with Seoul.

For Yang Moo-jinteacher from University of North Korean Studies, this new law reaffirms Pyongyang’s position that its nuclear program is no longer on the negotiating table. “Probably Pyongyang will strengthen ties with China and Russia against Washington and … will conduct its seventh nuclear test in the near future,” he said.

In late August, the United States and South Korea held their largest joint military exercises since 2018 in the face of a growing nuclear threat from North Korea. Washington is a staunch ally of Seoul in terms of security. Some 28,500 US troops are stationed in South Korea.

Birthday

North Korea unveiled the new path of its nuclear policy the day of the 74th anniversary of its foundationwhich celebrated the night before with massive celebrations on an unusual scale for a not round year, which is believed to be aimed at sending a message of unity in the face of natural disasters and the pandemic.

On the occasion, Kim publicized his stance to further boost the military and deploy more “advanced strategic and tactical weapons systems” to “remarkably strengthen the country’s deterrence.”

Kim also hinted at the direction he is seeking for the North’s foreign relations, which he will pursue “further expand and develop friendly and cooperative relations with neighboring countries” and extend their diplomacy.

The North Korean leader, who says he is watching “the transition from the unipolar to a multipolar world” outside of the “colonization” of the United StatesHe spoke of furthering his diplomacy “to develop multifaceted exchanges and cooperation with capitalist countries that respect and treat our country with friendship.”

North Korea keeps its borders closed.
since the outbreak of the covid-19 pandemic in early 2020 and has rejected the dialogue offers made since then by Seoul and Washington.

modernization

Last year, the North Korean regime approved a five-year weapons modernization plan that has brought about twenty projectile launches this year and that seems to be behind the preparations for a new nuclear test, whose shadow has increased after Kim’s latest statements.

If it takes place, it would be the first atomic test in Pyongyang in five years, which, according to South Korean and US intelligence, has been ready for months to be carried out.

In addition, this week the United States Intelligence services assure that Russia is in the process of acquiring millions of rockets and artillery shells from North Koreapublished the newspaper The New York Times. “The Russian military continues to suffer from severe supply shortages in Ukraine, due in part to controls and sanctions” imposed by the West, assessed a US official who spoke to the New York daily on condition of anonymity.

Intelligence officials believe that Russia may seek to purchase additional military equipment in the future, although they did not specify how much. The revelation comes shortly after the US government announced that Russia received drones made by Iran but faced technical problems when using them in Ukraine.

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