(ATTN: UPDATES with more details throughout)
By Lee Minji and Kim Han-joo
SEOUL, Oct. 4 (Yonhap) — North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has strongly criticized South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol, calling him an “abnormal man” for talking about military action against the nuclear-armed North, state media said Friday.
South Korea’s military, the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS), hit back at Kim’s remark, warning that the South’s military target is only focused on the North’s leader.
On Tuesday, Yoon said in an Armed Forces Day ceremony that North Korea will face the end of its regime if it attempts to use nuclear weapons, warning of a “resolute and overwhelming” response from the South Korea-U.S. alliance.
“The puppet Yoon bragged about overwhelming counteraction of military muscle at the doorstep of the state possessed of nuclear weapons and it was a great irony that caused the suspicion of being an abnormal man,” Kim said during a visit to a training base of the North’s special operation units Wednesday, according to the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).
Yoon’s address showed the “security uneasiness and irritating psychology of the puppet forces” and amounts to acknowledging that it is none other than South Korea and the United States that are “destroying regional security and peace,” Kim said, according to the KCNA.
It marks the first time in about two years that Kim has issued such strong remarks about Yoon without addressing him as president, the last instance being in July 2022 during a speech marking the 69th anniversary of the armistice that halted the 1950-53 Korean War.
The North’s leader also threatened to use nuclear weapons against South Korea without hesitation, if the South attempts to use armed forces against it.
“Saying that to pray for a good luck of survival in a military conflict with the nuclear weapons state would be a foolish thing that should not do, he said that if such situation comes, the permanent existence of Seoul and the Republic of Korea would be impossible,” the KCNA said.
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un (C) inspects a training base of the army’s special operations forces on Oct. 2, 2024, in this photo provided by the North’s official Korean Central News Agency on Oct. 4. (For Use Only in the Republic of Korea. No Redistribution) (Yonhap)
On Thursday, Kim’s influential sister, Kim Yo-jong, called South Korea’s Armed Forces Day ceremony “foolish” and the Hyunmoo-5 missile, first showcased during the event, a “weapon of worthless large bulk.”
She also claimed that the North’s multiple rocket launcher is “calculated to be equal to 900 tons of explosive power in terms of the explosive capacity of a conventional warhead,” in an apparent comparison with the Hyunmoo-5 missile that is known to be capable of carrying an eight-ton warhead.
South Korea’s defense ministry and the military issued statements condemning Kim’s remarks against Yoon and his threat to use nuclear weapons.
“We once again warn. Our strategic and military target is not people in North Korea, but only centered on Kim Jong-un,” the JCS said.
The defense ministry also denounced North Korea’s criticism of Yoon as “absolutely unacceptable” and said such verbal criticism simply demonstrates the North’s fear over the South Korean military’s powerful capabilities and firm defense posture.
“There is nothing for North Korea to gain from nuclear and missile development. The North Korean regime will immediately face its end in the event of a nuclear provocation,” it said.
The South’s military also downplayed Kim Yo-jong’s claim over the North’s weapons system, raising the possibility of deception.
“It is impossible in terms of a conventional weapons system,” a JCS official told reporters. “There is a possibility of deception and it does not make sense logically.”
The JCS official said the military is taking necessary preparation measures against the North’s verbal threats and assessing the details of the North’s statements.
The South’s disclosure of the Hyunmoo-5 missile on two 9-axled transporter erector launchers on Tuesday was seen as an apparent warning against North Korea’s nuclear and missile threats, with the powerful missile known to be able to target anywhere in the North.
Transporter erector launchers carrying Hyunmoo-5 ballistic missiles move on the tarmac at Seoul Air Base in Seongnam, just south of Seoul, for South Korea’s Armed Forces Day ceremony on Oct. 1, 2024. (Yonhap)
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