North Korea’s leader Kim Jong Un has threatened South Korea with war, according to state media. “If the Republic of Korea violates even 0.001 millimeters of our territory in the air and waters, it will be considered a provocation of war,” Kim said, using South Korea’s official name, according to a report by state news agency KCNA on Tuesday.
Kim also said Pyongyang would not recognize the two countries’ de facto maritime border, the so-called Northern Boundary Line, and called for constitutional changes that would allow the North to “occupy” South Korea in the event of war.
In a speech to the Supreme People’s Assembly, Kim called for the drafting of new legal measures to define South Korea as the “most hostile state” in the country’s socialist constitution, KCNA reported. “In my opinion, we can enshrine in our constitution the question of the complete occupation, subjugation and recovery of the Republic of Korea and annex it as part of the territory of our republic in the event of a war breaking out on the Korean Peninsula,” the North Korean leader said. Kim demanded that expressions such as “independence, peaceful reunification and great national unity” be deleted from the constitution.
Against the backdrop of the conflict over North Korea’s nuclear weapons program, the situation on the Korean peninsula is more tense than it has been for years. The country is subject to tough international sanctions. Kim had recently described South Korea as the main enemy during visits to ammunition factories and announced a realignment of the previous unification policy.
At the parliamentary session, Kim again accused South Korea of trying to overthrow his government. “We don’t want war, but we have no intention of avoiding it either.” He was quoted as saying that a constitutional amendment must make it clear that all North Koreans must be taught the idea “that South Korea is their first opponent and their main, immovable enemy.”
South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol responded to Kim’s sharp comments by saying that if the nuclear-armed North were provoked, South Korea would retaliate with a “many times stronger” response. In front of his cabinet, the head of government referred to the military’s “overwhelming response options”.
The Supreme People’s Assembly of North Korea is also referred to abroad as a mock parliament. It usually meets only a few times a year to approve decisions made by the state leadership and the Workers’ Party.
