On Sunday, North Korea sharply rebuked South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol’s policies, accusing them of heightening the risk of nuclear conflict on the Korean Peninsula. According to a report by Reuters, North Korea’s state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) released a white paper produced by the Institute for Enemy State Studies that lambasted Yoon for what it called “provocative” actions, including dismantling inter-Korean agreements, aligning with U.S. nuclear strategies, and strengthening ties with Japan and NATO.
The white paper claimed these moves have compelled North Korea to expand its nuclear capabilities significantly, stating, “These escalating military maneuvers have ironically compelled North Korea to increase its nuclear arsenal exponentially and further advance its nuclear strike capabilities.”
Yoon has maintained a hardline stance against North Korea’s ongoing development of nuclear weapons and ballistic missiles in defiance of UN Security Council resolutions.
During a phone call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy last week, Yoon stated, “Our administration will not tolerate the military collaboration between Russia and North Korea that threatens our security,” adding that they would closely monitor battlefield developments and implement effective, phased countermeasures.
North Korea, in turn, has accelerated its break with South Korea. In January, Chairman Kim Jong Un ordered the complete erasure of all traces related to unification, directing that the northern section of the Gyeongui Line, a symbol of inter-Korean cooperation, be rendered irreparable. This order was carried out nine months later. Last month, North Korea amended its constitution to designate South Korea as a hostile state officially.
Though the two Koreas signed an armistice in 1953 after the Korean War, they remain technically at war, as no peace treaty has been established.
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