JCS: "Will Not Tolerate North Korea's Unilateral Attempts to Change the Status Quo"

North Korean General Staff "Fortification Construction to Proceed from the 9th"
Joint Chiefs of Staff "Will Overwhelmingly Punish if Provocation Continues"

The Joint Chiefs of Staff stated on the 9th that regarding North Korea's declaration of complete severance of inter-Korean land routes and fortification construction, "Our military will never tolerate any actions by North Korea attempting unilateral changes to the status quo."

On the same day, through 'Our Military's Position on the North Korean General Staff's Report,' the Joint Chiefs clearly warned, "We emphasize that North Korea is fully responsible for all situations arising from this."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Earlier, the North Korean General Staff announced in a statement that "Starting from the 9th, construction will proceed to completely sever roads and railways connected to South Korea in our area and fortify them with solid defensive structures."

The Joint Chiefs responded by saying, "The claims of the North Korean General Staff are not worth considering," and emphasized, "The North Korean regime has continuously threatened peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula and in the international community through nuclear and missile development, ignoring the suffering of its people."

They added, "North Korea's recent talk of blockade and isolation, which has already been scheming to undermine the armistice regime in the Demilitarized Zone, is merely a desperate measure born from the insecurity of the failed Kim Jong-un regime and will lead to even harsher isolation."

Furthermore, the Joint Chiefs strongly warned, "If North Korea provokes, our military will overwhelmingly retaliate not only against the origin of the provocation but also against supporting and commanding forces, based on a firm combined defense posture."