Taeyongho "Mention of Pacific, Big Picture of Nuclear Disarmament Talks"
Rising Voices for Nuclear Armament
[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Ji-eun] North Korea has heightened tensions on the Korean Peninsula by carrying out ballistic missile provocations on the 20th, following the 18th. Kim Yo-jong, Deputy Director of the Workers' Party, declared that they would "use the Pacific as a shooting range," targeting the United States. Experts predict that this provocation could lead to a seventh nuclear test. North Korea is moving to solidify its status as a 'nuclear-armed state.'
Park Won-gon, a professor in the Department of North Korean Studies at Ewha Womans University, said on YTN's 'Newskin Park Ji-hoon' on the 20th, "If North Korea, due to economic difficulties, feels 'it's time to change the situation,' they may conduct a seventh nuclear test to once again announce their nuclear-armed status to the world and then come out to negotiate with the United States." He added, "This is what is commonly referred to as North Korea's 'brinkmanship tactics.'"
Since the end of last year, rumors have circulated that starvation deaths have occurred even within Kaesong due to worsening food conditions in North Korea. The Standing Committee members of South Korea's National Security Council (NSC) recently expressed in a meeting, "We deplore that the North Korean regime, amid a severe food crisis causing numerous starvation deaths, disregards the human rights and livelihoods of its people and focuses solely on large-scale military parades and nuclear and missile development."
Given the economic hardships, the likelihood of a 'turning point' through a seventh nuclear test has increased. Professor Park said, "North Korea has the goal of being recognized as a definite nuclear-armed state," adding, "From North Korea's perspective, the core objective is to be acknowledged as a de facto nuclear power and to negotiate with the United States to lift sanctions."
Former North Korean diplomat and People Power Party lawmaker Tae Yong-ho also referred to Kim Yo-jong's 'Pacific shooting range' remark on CBS's 'Kim Hyun-jung's News Show,' interpreting it as "(North Korea) sending a major message to the United States to 'hold nuclear arms reduction talks.'" He said, "They say they can now also fire toward the Pacific, and isn't the Pacific the United States?" He added, "North Korea is launching missiles like this and Kim Yo-jong is issuing consecutive statements. North Korea is drawing up a big plan right now."
North Korea's disclosure of the development level of its intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) in its statement is also for this reason. Lawmaker Tae said, "What is different from previous statements is that North Korea revealed in detail the development level of its current ICBMs," adding, "There has never been a statement that laid out such detailed arguments point by point."
As North Korea's nuclear test threat grows, public opinion favoring 'nuclear armament' is expected to gain more momentum. Recent multiple polls have shown that support for nuclear armament has exceeded 70%. Lawmaker Tae raised his voice through his social media, stating, "There is no guarantee that the United States will reject North Korea's proposal for nuclear arms reduction talks, which distinguishes between tactical and strategic nuclear weapons, to prevent the realization of North Korea's direct ICBM threat to the United States," and added, "The only way to achieve true nuclear balance and maintain peace on the Korean Peninsula is ultimately to possess our own nuclear weapons."
Jung Jin-seok, Emergency Response Committee Chairman of the People Power Party, said at the morning emergency committee meeting, "The more reckless North Korea's military provocations continue, the stronger the argument for South Korea's own nuclear armament will become," adding, "If North Korea uses nuclear weapons on the Korean Peninsula, we must strengthen the kill chain so that they can never rise again, but if this response is insufficient, we must seriously consider our own nuclear armament."
Meanwhile, there is also analysis that this missile launch was intended with next month's scheduled South Korea-U.S. joint military exercises in mind. Kim Jong-dae, a military security expert and former Justice Party lawmaker, predicted that North Korea's recent consecutive ballistic missile launches are a preliminary round, and next month's South Korea-U.S. joint exercises will be the main event. On MBC's 'Kim Jong-bae's Focus,' he said, "By showing some preemptive military actions in advance, they are sending a message beforehand that 'even if joint exercises are held in the future, we will not back down.'"
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