N. Korea leader orders nuclear arsenal on standby
SEOUL ( Reuters/ AFP/ AP) – North Korean leader Kim Jong Un ordered his country to be ready to use its nuclear weapons at any time and the military to be in “preemptive attack” mode in the face of growing threats from its enemies, state media said on Friday.
In a related development, the Philippine coast guard inspected a North Korean cargo vessel that docked at a port northwest of Manila in one of the first such checks since the UN Security Council imposed further sanctions on Pyongyang over its nuclear program.
The comments, carried by the North’s official KCNA news agency, marked a further escalation of tension on the Korean peninsula after the UN Security Council imposed harsh new sanctions against the isolated state on Wednesday for its nuclear program.
North Korea, known for belligerent rhetoric, has previously threatened pre-emptive attacks on its enemies, including South Korea and the United States. Military experts doubt it has yet developed the capability to fire a long-range missile with a miniaturized warhead to deliver a nuclear weapon as far as the United States.
Kim made the comments as he supervised military exercises involving newly developed rocket launchers, KCNA reported. It did not mention the date of the drills but said the new weapons had South Korea within range.
South Korea’s defense ministry said on Thursday North Korea launched several projectiles off its coast into the sea up to 150 kilometers (90 miles) away, an apparent response to the UN sanctions.
Kim said North Korea should “bolster up (its) nuclear force both in quality and quantity” and stressed “the need to get the nuclear warheads deployed for national defense always on standby so as to be fired any moment,” KCNA quoted him as saying.
“Now is the time for us to convert our mode of military counteraction toward the enemies into a pre-emptive attack one in every aspect.”
Kim criticized South Korean President Park Geun-hye in his first direct published mention of her by name for acting “in league with the US scoundrels,” adding, “her hysteria will precipitate only her ruin in the long run,” KCNA said.
Cargo inspection
The MV Jin Teng was inspected in Subic Bay after it arrived Thursday from Balembang, Indonesia, loaded with palm kernel expeller, Coast Guard Commander Raul Belesario said.
The 6,830 deadweight ton ( dwt) general cargo ship Jin Teng is among 31 vessels that could be forced to stop trading after being included in an asset freeze against a North Korean shipping company under the tightened sanctions passed unanimously by the Security Council on Wednesday.
Belesario, who heads the port control division that includes Subic, said five coast guard personnel accompanied by two bomb sniffer dogs boarded the vessel Thursday. The inspectors did not find any suspicious materials but spotted minor deficiencies including missing fire hoses, a corroded air vent, and electrical switches without insulation.
Another inspection will be done before the ship sails for southwestern China’s Zhanjiang port, and the ship will only be allowed to depart if the deficiencies have been rectified, he added. The vessel’s departure date is unclear.
As of yesterday, cargo was still being unloaded from the ship. Palm kernel expeller is a byproduct of palm oil production and has several uses, including as feed for farm animals.
The ship’s documents showed the cargo was for consignees in the Philippines and no new cargo would be loaded at Subic Bay, Belesario said.