- The intensification of war exercises is necessary for the North Korean military to “rapidly” improve its combat capabilities for “perfect preparation for war.”
- Leader Kim repeated last month that Pyongyang would not hesitate to “end” South Korea if attacked, thus increasing the intensity of the exercises.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un brandished a gun while inspecting a major operational training base, urging his military to step up “real war drills,” state media reported Thursday.
Wearing a black leather jacket, Kim was shown speaking to rows of heavily armed camouflaged soldiers, supervising shooting exercises and inspecting weaponry, footage from Korea’s official Central News Agency showed.
During his Wednesday visit to the base in the country’s western region, Kim told the North Korean military to “constantly intensify actual war exercises aimed at rapidly improving its combat capabilities for perfect preparation for war,” KCNA reported.
His visit comes as Seoul and Washington conduct their annual spring military exercises, known as “Freedom Shield,” which include field exercises, missile interception drills and some live firing.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un brandished a gun while inspecting a major operational training base, urging his military to step up “real war drills,” state media reported Thursday.
Kim told the North Korean military to “constantly intensify actual war exercises aimed at rapidly improving its combat capabilities for perfect preparation for war.”
Pyongyang called the exercises “reckless” and warned allies they will pay a “dear price.”
KCNA photographs also show Kim being applauded by soldiers, who “pledged him their intense loyalty” “in the sacred struggle for the country’s security.”
North Korea has long condemned joint military exercises between the United States and South Korea, calling them rehearsals for an invasion.
In the past, the nuclear-armed North has conducted weapons tests in response to such joint exercises.
Seoul said on Tuesday that its military was fully prepared for possible provocations from North Korea.
He tested various weapons and also military equipment while observing the military.
He said Pyongyang would not hesitate to ‘end’ South Korea if attacked
So far this year, Pyongyang has declared South Korea its “main enemy,” scrapped agencies dedicated to reunification and extension, and threatened war over “even 0.001 mm” of territorial infringement.
Leader Kim repeated last month that Pyongyang would not hesitate to “end” South Korea if attacked.
In January, North Korea fired an artillery barrage near two South Korean border islands, prompting a live-fire drill by the South and evacuation orders for residents.
