Back in August, North Korea’s ruler Kim ordered that preparations for war be pushed forward aggressively. Now he wants to accelerate this – and accuses the USA of working towards a confrontation.
North Korea’s leader Kim Jong Un has called on the military and the defense industry to step up preparations in the event of a war on the Korean peninsula. Kim made the announcement at the year-end meeting of the central committee of the largely isolated country’s ruling Workers’ Party. He again accused the USA of working with allies towards a confrontation with North Korea.
Nuclear weapons capable Missiles tested
The military situation has reached an extreme point, Kim was quoted as saying by state media. Reports also say that Kim outlined military tasks for the People’s Army, the munitions industry, the nuclear weapons and civil defense sectors – they should speed up preparations for war.
After an unprecedented series of missile tests last year, North Korea has again tested nuclear-capable missiles, including intercontinental ballistic missiles, several times this year. Most recently, North Korea had its policy of expanding its nuclear weapons arsenal enshrined in the constitution.
Already in August preparations
The announcement doesn’t come as a complete surprise: Kim had already ordered at a meeting of the party’s central military commission in August that preparations for war must be pushed forward aggressively.
The decisions at that time were also seen as a reaction to South Korea’s greater military cooperation with the USA. Both countries see North Korea, which is subject to international sanctions because of its nuclear weapons program, as their greatest enemies.
Tensions had recently increased significantly again: the USA and South Korea decided in April to increase their military cooperation and, among other things, to expand their joint military exercises. The USA also imposed sanctions against North Korea.