North Korea warns of nuclear 'sacred war'

[EagleOne]

North Korea says it will use its "nuclear deterrent" in response to joint US-South Korean military exercises this weekend.

Pyongyang was ready to launch a "retaliatory sacred war", the state-run Korean Central News Agency (KINA) said, quoting defence officials.

Washington and Seoul say the war games are to deter North Korean aggression.

Tensions between the two Koreas have been high since the sinking of a South Korean warship in March.

An international investigation said the ship was sunk by a North Korean torpedo, a claim strongly denied by Pyongyang.

"All these war manoeuvres are nothing but outright provocations aimed to stifle the Democratic People's Republic of Korea [North Korea] by force of arms," KCNA reported the powerful National Defence Commission as saying.

"The army and people of the DPRK will start a retaliatory sacred war of their own style based on nuclear deterrent any time necessary in order to counter the US imperialists and the South Korean puppet forces deliberately pushing the situation to the brink of a war."

The BBC's John Sudworth, in Seoul, says it is not the first time that North Korea has issued such a warning.

Although it is likely to be dismissed as the usual diplomatic brinkmanship, the rising tension will cause concern among governments in the region, he adds.

In response, the White House said it was not interested in a "war of words" with North Korea.

State Department spokesman PJ Crowley said the US wanted "more constructive action and fewer provocative words" from Pyongyang.

The North had already promised a physical response to the military exercises during an Asian regional security forum in Vietnam.

North Korea's delegation spokesman at the Association of South East Asian Nations (Asean) Regional Forum (ARF) said the exercises were an example of 19th century "gunboat diplomacy".

"It is a threat to the Korean peninsula and the region of Asia as a whole," he said.

China warning

The forum was dominated by the crisis between the two Koreas.

The war games - which begin on Sunday - will involve the aircraft carrier USS George Washington, 20 other ships and submarines, 100 aircraft and 8,000 personnel.

China has criticised the plans and warned against any action which might "exacerbate regional tensions".

But Japan is sending four military observers, in an apparent endorsement of the drills.

The US announced on Wednesday that it was to impose new sanctions on North Korea, aimed at halting nuclear proliferation and the import of luxury goods.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific-10748148

do they have credible nuclear wepons??

 

[sandeepdg]

N Korea warns of nuclear strike
US Sanctions, War Drill Triggers Belligerence

Seoul/Tokyo: In an unprecedented warning from a nuclear-armed nation, North Korea has threatened to use its ''nuclear deterrent'' in response to wargames by the US and South Korea starting Sunday, ramping up tensions on the Korean peninsula.
North Korea's National Defence Commission (NDC), headed by the reclusive Kim Jong-il, issued the threat for what it called a second unpardonable provocation, in that it has been blamed once again for the March drowning of a South Korean ship.
''The army and people of the [North] will legitimately counter with their powerful nuclear deterrence the largest-ever nuclear war exercises,'' the NDC said in a statement on the state-run Korean Central News Agency. ''The more desperately the US imperialists brandish their nukes and the more zealously their lackeys follow them, the more rapidly the [North's] nuclear deterrence will be bolstered up along the orbit of self-defence and the more remote the prospect for the denuclearization of the Korean peninsula will be become,'' it said.
Pyongyang routinely threatens war when the South holds military exercises with the US. South Korea's defence ministry said no unusual North Korean military movement has been detected. The US State Department said it did not want a war of words with North Korea. The latest round of bickering was set off when US secretary of state Hillary Clinton unveiled sanctions designed to deny luxury goods to North Korea's elite and strangle funding for nuclear programme.

http://epaper.timesofindia.com/Defa...geLabel=1&EntityId=Ar00103&ViewMode=HTML&GZ=T

 

[Yusuf]

Just shows how crazy kim is. I think his name is just as apt "Ill". He needs some help. Which country threatens nukes against an exercise? They threatened Nukes when they sank SK ship. They threaten with nukes when sanctions are imposed. Just shows nukes in the hands of mad men are absolutely dangerous and the world has to make sure more such mad men don't get these weapons.

 

[ajtr]

^^Every country has right to deter the aggression through any weapons in its armory.

 

[SHASH2K2]

US, South Korea start military drills
North Korea protestsThe US and South Korean militaries kicked off large exercises on Sunday to underscore deterrence against North Korea after accusing the reclusive communist state of sinking a warship.

Pyongyang warned that the drill had pitched the peninsula onto the brink of war.

US naval vessels, including the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS George Washington, began the drills by setting off from South Korean ports where they had called last week in a show of force timed with a high-level meeting between the two allies.

North Korea drove tensions to new heights after a team of investigators, led by South Korea's military, accused it of firing a torpedo in March to sink the corvette Cheonan, killing 46 men.

The United States announced new sanctions on the North last week, freezing the assets of Pyongyang's leaders it said were earned through illcit activities and cutting off the flow of cash to them. The moves would also ban travel by some individuals.

China had objected to the drills. Beijing criticised the introduction of large-scale military equipment into the Yellow Sea off the peninsula's west coast, prompting a move of the bulk of the exercises to areas off the east coast.

On Saturday, the North's powerful National Defence Commission vowed to launch a "sacred war" against the United States and South Korea at "any time necessary", in response to the drills, denounced as "reckless."

Vessels, Aircraft

The drills involve more than 200 aircraft, including the F-22 Raptor fighter, and three destroyers, including the USS John S. McCain, part of the 97,000-tonne USS George Washington's strike group.

Four Japanese military officers will be on board the carrier to observe the drills.

Pyongyang has routinely been shrill in voicing its anger in the past when the allies conducted exercises.

But US officials say further provocations are possible in coming months, especially as the North tries to build political momentum for the succession to leader Kim Jong-il, expected to hand power to his youngest son.

North Korea has called for the resumption of six-party nuclear disarmament talks that it had boycotted since late 2008, a move analysts said was an attempt to put the Cheonan incident behind it and win lucrative aid through negotiations with the South, the United States, Japan, Russia and China.

On Saturday, the North's foreign ministry said it was ready for dialogue but vowed to respond by force if it had to.
"We are not the one who would be surprised by military threats or sanctions," a ministry spokesman said.
http://www.hindustantimes.com/US-South-Korea-start-military-drills-North-Korea-protests/H1-Article1-577312.aspx

 

[ahmedsid]

Just Hot Air !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[thakur_ritesh]

barking dogs seldom bite!

 

[ajtr]

barking dogs seldom bite!

mas dogs do bark and bite too.....

 

[Agantrope]

mas dogs do bark and bite too.....

Before DPRK pushes the nuke button, RoK and Unkils forces will be rolling down the streets of the Pyongyang.

 

[ajtr]

Before DPRK pushes the nuke button, RoK and Unkils forces will be rolling down the streets of the Pyongyang.

When they were unable to march into Pyongyang during 3 yrs of korean war.I highly doubt their ability to do it now.Recent south korean warship sinking is case in point showed the impotency of both usa and south korea to punish north korea for its crime.

 

[Yusuf]

Not that easy Agan. First up they will be running around to save Seoul.

 

[Agantrope]

When they were unable to march into Pyongyang during 3 yrs of korean war.I highly doubt their ability to do it now.Recent south korean warship sinking is case in point showed the impotency of both usa and south korea to punish north korea for its crime.

DPRK are formidable in their land forces, but still RoK has a very good edge in the air warfare, this will make a huge collateral damage into the DPRK forces.I meant to say that because if unkil is not going to help any of allies (Read as Malaysia, Singapore, Japan, phillipines ) they they will tend towards the China which is not a unwanted scene for them. We can see atleast 50-60 F-16/F-15s will be in the RoK airbases on the eve of korean war.

 

[Neil]

When they were unable to march into Pyongyang during 3 yrs of korean war.I highly doubt their ability to do it now.Recent south korean warship sinking is case in point showed the impotency of both usa and south korea to punish north korea for its crime.

i doubt it.....RoK has even fire power to take on DPRK in head to head battles[they dont need USA at all]...only time USA comes into play is use of nuclear war.....

and regarding punishing DPRK...even we didnt punish pakistan for 26/11 so does it mean we are weak....??!!