Kim Jong Un's North Korea Vows 'Decisive Response' To US Military Activity As It Blames Washington For Turning Korean Peninsula Into 'Thermonuclear Zone'

Kim Jong Un‘s North Korea reacted strongly to the recent U.S. military activity on the Korean Peninsula, promising a “decisive and overwhelming” response.

What Happened: North Korea expressed severe criticism over Washington’s recent deployment of strategic assets to the region, Yonhap News Agency reported.

The USS Ronald Reagan, a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier, docked in the southeastern city of Busan last Thursday at the conclusion of trilateral naval maneuvers involving the U.S., South Korea, and Japan. Additionally, a U.S. nuclear-capable B-52 bomber is scheduled to land at a South Korean airbase this week.

Kim Tong-myong, a researcher at North Korea’s Society for International Politics Study, condemned the U.S. for its “dangerous nuclear provocations,” which he argues are pushing the world toward a “thermonuclear zone.”

“It is working hard to highlight the defensive nature, but the world recognizes that the U.S. mainland missile defense system is, in essence, a means for carrying out a nuclear war of aggression,” said Kim Kwang-myong, another researcher at the North’s Institute for Disarmament and Peace.

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Kwang-myong added that the U.S. has “deliberately escalated the situation by frequently dispatching nuclear strategic assets” in the Korean peninsula. He added that Pyongyang will counter Washington’s “hostile forces” for a “nuclear war” with an “overwhelming and decisive response strategy.”

In a separate statement, a North Korean foreign ministry researcher accused the U.S. of using a recent congressional report on the risks of North Korea’s nuclear arsenal as a justification for a preemptive nuclear strike against North Korea.

Why It Matters: The aforementioned report, issued by the Congressional Commission on the Strategic Posture of the U.S., stated that North Korea is poised to deploy enough nuclear-tipped intercontinental ballistic missiles to surpass the U.S. missile defense system. This, coupled with the possibility of a nuclear test, could enable tactical nuclear operations.

These developments come as North Korea continues to enhance its nuclear weapons capabilities, amending its constitution last month to enshrine a nuclear force-building policy.

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