North Korea’s Kim Warns of Nuclear Attack if Enemy Provokes with Nuke

By Staff, Agencies

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un announced that his country would launch a nuclear attack if an enemy provokes it with nuclear weapons, apparently referring to the United States, according to state media.

Kim issued the warning when he met with soldiers during the launching drill of an intercontinental ballistic missile [ICBM], KCNA news agency reported on Thursday.

“He [Kim] said that the resolute military activity conducted by the [military's missile] company this time ... was ... a clear explanation of the offensive counteraction mode and the evolution of the nuclear strategy and doctrine of the DPRK not to hesitate even a nuclear attack when the enemy provokes it with nukes,” Reuters quoted KCNA as reporting.

The North Korean leadership usually calls South Korea and the United States the enemy. Only the US is capable of mounting a nuclear attack on the North.

The Democratic People's Republic of Korea [DPRK] said on Tuesday it had tested its latest ICBM on Monday to measure the war readiness of its nuclear force against increasing American hostility.

According to the KCNA report, Kim said the ICBM test demonstrated the North Korean military's high mobility and rapid attack capability, and urged the military to further strengthen its combat efficiency.

Meanwhile, Kim’s sister, Kim Yo-jong issued a separate statement in which she said the ICBM launch was a maneuver of the nation's right to self-defense and denounced the United Nations Security Council [UNSC] for holding a session over its ICBM launch.

“The UNSC should place heavy responsibility on the irresponsible behavior and act of the US and the ROK [the Republic of Korea], which have aggravated the tension on the Korean peninsula through all sorts of military provocations all year round,” she said.