North Korean leader Kim Jong Un said his country was ready to mobilize its
The speech came as officials in Seoul and Washington said Pyongyang had completed preparations to conduct its first nuclear test since 2017.
South Korea’s unification minister, which handles inter-Korean affairs, said on Tuesday there was a “likely” trial around the anniversary of the ceasefire. However, a military official said there were no immediate indications for it.
On Wednesday, South Korea’s foreign minister said that North Korea is likely to face stronger sanctions, including measures targeting its cyberattack capabilities if it goes ahead with testing.
Kim made the remarks on Thursday during a speech at an event to mark the 69th anniversary of the Korean War ceasefire on July 27, according to the official KCNA news agency, which left two Koreans technically still at war.
Kim said that since the 1950-53 war with the United States posed nuclear threats, the North needed to achieve the “immediate historic task” of bolstering its self-defence.
“Our armed forces are thoroughly prepared to respond to any crisis, and our nation’s nuclear war deterrence is also fully ready to mobilise its absolute strength faithfully, accurately and promptly to its mission,” he said.
The speech came as officials in Seoul and Washington said Pyongyang had completed preparations to conduct its first nuclear test since 2017.
South Korea’s unification minister, which handles inter-Korean affairs, said on Tuesday there was a “likely” trial around the anniversary of the ceasefire. However, a military official said there were no immediate indications for it.
On Wednesday, South Korea’s foreign minister said that North Korea would likely face stronger sanctions, including measures targeting its cyberattack capabilities, if it goes ahead with testing.