Al Mayadeen English

  • Ar
  • Es
  • x
Al Mayadeen English

Slogan

  • News
    • Politics
    • Economy
    • Sports
    • Arts&Culture
    • Health
    • Miscellaneous
    • Technology
    • Environment
  • Articles
    • Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Blog
    • Features
  • Videos
    • NewsFeed
    • Video Features
    • Explainers
    • TV
    • Digital Series
  • Infographs
  • In Pictures
  • • LIVE
News
  • Politics
  • Economy
  • Sports
  • Arts&Culture
  • Health
  • Miscellaneous
  • Technology
  • Environment
Articles
  • Opinion
  • Analysis
  • Blog
  • Features
Videos
  • NewsFeed
  • Video Features
  • Explainers
  • TV
  • Digital Series
Infographs
In Pictures
  • Africa
  • Asia
  • Asia-Pacific
  • Europe
  • Latin America
  • MENA
  • Palestine
  • US & Canada
BREAKING
Russian agency: Russia will conduct a nuclear test if the US does
Al-Nakhalah: We are the rightful owners, and we must fight to retrieve our rights
Al-Nakhalah: The enemy and its allies must know that we can never surrender to their terms and diktats after all the sacrifices made
Al-Nakhalah: The prisoner exchange clause can be completed in the next few days, and thus we will have pulled the [explosion] fuse and removed the enemy's justifications for aggression
Al-Nakhalah: The Resistance has expressed its willingness to negotiate on the basis that there are items that can be dealt with positively, the first of which is the prisoner exchange item
Al-Nakhalah: Trump's plan entails the Palestinian people's declaration of complete surrender to the enemy
PIJ Secretary-General, Ziyad al-Nakhalah, in an address aired on Al Mayadeen: The Resistance is engaging in a fierce negotiating battle under the so-called Trump plan
Russian Federation Council approves joint military cooperation agreement with Cuba
Al-Nunu: Today, the lists of prisoners required to be released, the agreed-upon criteria and numbers, were exchanged
Al-Nunu from Sharm el-Sheikh: Negotiations focused on mechanisms for implementing an end to the war, the withdrawal of occupation forces from the Gaza Strip, and the exchange of prisoners

South Korean defense paper dubs DPRK 'enemy', again

  • By Al Mayadeen English
  • Source: Agencies
  • 16 Feb 2023 13:31
2 Min Read

Signaling a further hardening of stance toward Pyongyang, South Korea refers to its neighbor as its "enemy" in a defense paper for the first time in six years.

  • x
  • Kim Jong-un speaks during the 8th Central Committee meeting of the Workers' Party of Korea in Pyongyang (KCNA via Reuters)
    Kim Jong Un speaks during the 8th Central Committee meeting of the Workers' Party of Korea in Pyongyang (KCNA via Reuters)

A country usually makes extreme efforts to prevent instabilities with its direct neighbors. However, South Korea referred to its neighbor DPRK as its "enemy" in a defense paper on Thursday for the first time in six years, signaling a further hardening of Seoul's stance toward Pyongyang.

Since the 1950-53 Korean War concluded with an armistice rather than a peace treaty, the two countries have remained officially at war.

As South Korea weaves closer ties with the US, DPRK's leader declared last year that his country is an "irreversible" nuclear power, conducting weapon tests nearly every month, including the launch of its most advanced intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM).

Adding salt to injury, Seoul's new conservative administration has increased joint drills with Washington, not to mention referring to Pyongyang as the South's "enemy" in a new defense white paper.

Related News

China, DPRK pledge deeper ties to counter US-led hegemony

China urges DPRK to oppose ‘hegemony’, in veiled swing at US

North Korea "designated us as an 'undoubted enemy'" in December 2022, the paper, formally disclosed Thursday, said. "As a result, the North Korean dictatorship and military, which are the major agents of the actions, are our adversaries," it added.

The move exemplified the condition of inter-Korean ties, which are "filled with confrontations," AFP quoted Yang Moo-jin, a professor at Seoul's University of North Korean Studies, as saying.

"It even gives the impression of a return to the Cold War era," he added.

The phrase "enemy" was first used in South Korea's biannual defense white paper in 1994 after a DPRK official vowed to pour "a sea of fire" on the South, and it remained used until roughly 2000.

It was suspended for a few years until it reappeared in 2010. It was dropped once more under Seoul's former president Moon Jae In who advocated for dialogue with Pyongyang.

South Korea's current President, Yoon Suk Yeol, took over from Moon in May last year, vowing to get tough on DPRK. 

  • Pyongyang
  • DPRK
  • US
  • South Korea

Most Read

Tucker Carlson speaks at a memorial for Charlie Kirk, Sunday, September 21, 2025, at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona (AP)

Tucker Carlson: Israeli officers gave orders on Iran inside Pentagon

  • Politics
  • 2 Oct 2025
A Hamas fighter in combat fatigues stands before the ceremony for the handover of Israeli captives to the Red Cross in Nuseirat, central Gaza Strip, Saturday, February 22, 2025 (AP)

Hamas responds to Trump plan, backs Gaza withdrawal, exchange

  • Politics
  • 3 Oct 2025
Mossad’s secret role in Aldo Moro’s 1978 murder revealed

Mossad’s secret role in Aldo Moro’s 1978 murder exposed

  • Politics
  • 5 Oct 2025
Al-Quds Brigades strike a command and control center north of Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip, in an undated screengrab from the al-Quds Brigades military media

Gaza resistance announces major operations against Israeli forces

  • Politics
  • 1 Oct 2025

Coverage

All
War on Gaza

Read Next

All
Retired Israeli General Brik says Israel has reached point of no return.
Politics

Retired Israeli General Brik: 'Israel has reached point of no return'

Depleted by foreign wars, US seeks to re-arm for another confrontation
Politics

Depleted by foreign wars, US seeks to re-arm for another confrontation

Gaza’s newborns gasp for life as hospitals collapse amid Israeli war
Health

Gaza newborns gasp for life, share oxygen masks amid collapsed system

UK arms exports to 'Israel' reach record high despite ban calls
Politics

UK arms exports to 'Israel' reach record high despite ban calls

Al Mayadeen English

Al Mayadeen is an Arab Independent Media Satellite Channel.

All Rights Reserved

  • x
  • Privacy Policy
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Authors
Android
iOS