South Korea said Thursday North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has ordered greater preparations for terror attacks on the South, including cyberattacks.
Advertisement
In a show of force aimed squarely at North Korea, four U.S. F-22 stealth fighters flew low over South Korea on February 17.
“The North’s Reconnaissance General Bureau is preparing for terror acts, including cyber attacks under Kim’s directives to intensify preparation for them”, said Lee.
― Reuters picSEOUL, Feb 18 ― Seeking to push through a sweeping “anti-terrorism” law that has been blocked by opposition parties, South Korea’s government cited today the heightened risk of North Korea instigating “terror attacks”.
After the rocket launch, Seoul announced that talks would begin with Washington on deploying a sophisticated USA missile defence system in South Korea and that the allies’ annual military drills in the spring will be the biggest ever.
North Korea has a history of attacks against South Korea, but it is impossible to independently confirm what is really happening in the secretive North. North Korea says its adversaries, including the U.S., seek to bring Pyongyang down, and it is thus strengthening itself against hostile countries.
The United States on Wednesday flew four stealth F-22 fighter jets over South Korea and reaffirmed it maintains an “ironclad commitment” to the defense of its Asian ally.
Seoul will also increase the number of troops participating.
The foreign ministry had told lawmakers that China also shared the need to slap stronger and more effective sanctions on North Korea as Seoul has appealed for co-operation, Mr Lee said.
On January 6, North Korea conducted its fourth nuclear test in what the worldwide community considers an illegal disguised test of long-range missiles.
North Korea regularly ratchets up its hostile rhetoric around the time of the joint US-South Korea military exercises, which usually spark a sharp surge in tensions on the divided peninsula.
Advertisement
The conservative Chosun Ilbo newspaper said in an editorial last month that it’s inevitable the South should begin discussions on acquiring nuclear weapons. The system would be useless against North Korean short-range missiles that fly at lower altitudes, and which pose the biggest immediate threat to South Korea because they could be fired quickly from mobile launchers.
