North Korea’s Kim warns of nuclear strikes against South Korea if provoked
SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA — North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has issued a stark warning, stating that he would resort to nuclear weapons and completely destroy South Korea if provoked. This threat follows a speech by South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol, who declared that North Korea’s regime would collapse should it attempt to use nuclear arms. While such aggressive rhetoric between the two Koreas is not uncommon, it has intensified amid rising tensions over North Korea’s recent announcement of a nuclear facility and ongoing missile tests. Observers anticipate that North Korea’s parliament will soon formally declare a hostile “two-state” system on the Korean Peninsula, further rejecting any notions of reconciliation with the South.
During a recent visit to a special operations forces unit, Kim asserted that his military would not hesitate to deploy all available offensive capabilities, including nuclear weapons, in response to any South Korean military incursions.
He stated that if such a scenario unfolded, “the permanent existence of Seoul and the Republic of Korea would be impossible.” Kim’s remarks were aimed at President Yoon’s earlier address, in which he unveiled South Korea’s advanced Hyunmoo-5 ballistic missile and emphasized the readiness of the South Korean-U.S. alliance to respond decisively to any nuclear threats.
In reaction, Kim criticized Yoon’s “bellicose temerity” and dismissed the South’s military advancements, asserting that they could not match North Korea’s nuclear capabilities.
As tensions mount, all communication channels between the two nations remain stalled since 2019, following the collapse of broader diplomacy aimed at denuclearization.
Peoplesmind