DPRK administration would 'end' if it uses nukes: S. Korean president

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Agencies
1 Oct 2024 08:59

Yoon warns the DPRK that it will face a "resolute and overwhelming response" if it attempts to use nuclear weapons.

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South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol delivers a speech during a meeting for a national AI committee in Seoul, South Korea, Thursday, September 26, 2024. (AP)

Kim Jong Un, the leader of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), would face the collapse of his administration if he ever deployed his country’s nuclear arsenal against Seoul, South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol warned on Tuesday.

If the DPRK "attempts to use nuclear weapons, it will face the resolute and overwhelming response of our military," Yoon asserted during a ceremony commemorating South Korea's Armed Forces Day, addressing 5,300 service members gathered at Seoul Air Base.

He added that day would "mark the end" of Kim's administration, underscoring the strength of South Korea’s security alliance with the United States, which maintains a substantial troop presence in the country.

At the event, South Korea unveiled its most powerful ballistic missile to date, the Hyunmoo-5, designed to target and destroy underground bunkers. The display also featured a flyover by a US B-1B strategic bomber, flanked by F-15K fighter jets, emphasizing the close military cooperation between Seoul and Washington.

Pyongyang criticized the US bomber’s appearance, with Vice-Minister of National Defense Kim Kang Il underscoring that the DPRK's military would be "keenly watching the frequent deployment" of such strategic assets.

He underlined that the DPRK forces were "fully prepared to thoroughly defend" the nuclear-armed state, according to the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).

Yoon’s warning follows the recent release of images showing Kim Jong Un inspecting a uranium enrichment facility, where he called for the expansion of centrifuges to bolster the DPRK's nuclear stockpile.

South Korea’s intelligence agency subsequently warned that the unprecedented revelation was "directed at the US," warning that the DPRK could produce a considerable number of nuclear weapons using its existing reserves of highly enriched uranium and plutonium.

South Korean lawmakers were also briefed last week by the National Intelligence Service, which suggested that the DPRK may conduct another nuclear test—its seventh—following the US elections in November.