The general staff of the DPRK’s Korean People’s Army on Sunday allegedly ordered artillery formations near the border with South Korea to be put on full alert, Korean media reported.
Pyongyang accused South Korea of sending drones into its airspace three times this month, Seoul-based Yonhap News reported.
In a statement released by state media, Kim Yo Jong, the influential sister of leader Kim Jong Un, says North Korea is ready to take “decisive retaliation” if drones carrying anti-North Korean material fly again, warning that an attack could come unexpectedly.
In response, South Korea’s Defence Ministry said any attempt by Pyongyang to endanger its citizens would bring down the North Korean government.
On Friday, North Korea’s foreign ministry said South Korean drones carrying leaflets were spotted over Pyongyang on October 3, as well as Wednesday and Thursday. North Korea has threatened a forceful response if such flights continue.
South Korean Defence Minister Kim Yong-hyun initially denied any military drone incursions across the border, and the Joint Chiefs of Staff later said it could not verify North Korea’s claims.
South Korean authorities do not believe in the outbreak of war by the DPRK as it would be tantamount to suicide for Pyongyang, said Shin Won-sik, head of the national security office of the Korean presidential administration. the politician said in an interview with KBS television:
I believe that North Korea will not start a war unless it decides to commit suicide.
Shin Won-sik noted that since the end of the Korean War, there has always been a risk of a new full-scale military conflict on the peninsula. He emphasised that the possibility of the DPRK starting a war depends not so much on their desire, but on South Korea’s readiness and determination to resist such actions. In his opinion, South Korea should always be ready to respond to provocations by the North.
