N-Korea Declares State of War with Seoul

Local Editor

North Korea on Saturday declared it had entered into a state of war with South Korea and warned Seoul and Washington that any provocation would swiftly escalate into an all-out nuclear conflict.

The United States said it took the announcement "seriously," even though it followed a familiar pattern, while South Korea largely dismissed it as an old threat dressed in new clothing.

"As of now, inter-Korea relations enter a state of war and all matters between the two Koreas will be handled according to wartime protocol," the North said in a government statement carried by the Korean Central News Agency.

"The long-standing situation of the Korean peninsula being neither at peace nor at war is finally over," the statement said, adding that any US or South Korean provocation would trigger a "full-scale conflict and a nuclear war."
The two Koreas have technically remained at war for the past six decades because the 1950-53 Korean War concluded with an armistice rather than a peace treaty.

The North had announced earlier this month that it was ripping up the armistice and other bilateral peace pacts signed with Seoul in protest against South Korea-US joint military exercises.
Voiding the ceasefire theoretically opened the way to a resumption of hostilities, although the armistice was approved by the UN General Assembly, and both the UN and South Korea repudiated the North's unilateral withdrawal.

The White House labeled the latest statement from Pyongyang as "unconstructive" and, while taking it "seriously," sought to place the immediate threat level in context.
"North Korea has a long history of bellicose rhetoric and threats and today's announcement follows that familiar pattern," said US National Security Council spokeswoman Caitlin Hayden.
In Seoul, the Unification Ministry insisted the war threat was "not really new" and the Defense Ministry added that no notable troop movement had been observed along the border.

Both China and Russia called for calm Friday, with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov voicing particular concern.
"We can simply see the situation getting out of control, it would spiral down into a vicious circle," Lavrov told reporters at a news conference.
His warning came after North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un ordered missile units to prepare to strike U.S. mainland and military bases, so as to "settle accounts" after US stealth bombers flew over South Korea.
As tensions escalated, Washington has maintained a notably assertive stance, publicizing its use of nuclear-capable B-52s and B-2 stealth bombers in the war games.

Source: News Agencies, Edited by moqawama.org