Seoul, Sep 26 (EFE).- South Korea’s President Yoon Suk-yeol on Tuesday warned North Korea that Seoul and its ally Washington would “end” its regime if it uses nuclear weapons.
President of South Korea Yoon Suk Yeol speaks during the 78th session of the United Nations General Assembly at United Nations Headquarters in New York, New York, USA, 20 September 2023. EFE-EPA FILE/ADAM GRAY
“The North Korean regime must clearly realize that nuclear weapons will never be able to guarantee its security,” Yoon said at an event held for the 75th anniversary of the founding of the armed forces at Seoul Air Base, in Seongnam, south of the South Korean capital.
“Our military will immediately retaliate against any North Korean provocation. If North Korea uses nuclear weapons, its regime will be brought to an end by an overwhelming response from the South Korea-US alliance,” he added.
Yoon also said Kim Jong-un’s regime has an “obsession” with nuclear weapons, which he said “aggravates the North Korean people’s suffering.”
“It continues to exploit and oppress its people, and violate their human rights.”
The leader added that South Korea will further strengthen security cooperation with the United States and Japan based on its “ironclad” alliance with Washington.
Under the Yoon government, which came to power in May 2022, relations with Tokyo have improved substantially while communication with Pyongyang, which usually publishes insulting articles about the South Korean president, is non-existent.
“Our people will never be deceived by the fake peace tricks of North Korea’s communist regime, its followers and anti-state forces,” Yoon added.
Tuesday’s 75th Armed Forces Day event, which commemorated the founding of the army on Oct. 1, 1948, was marred by rain, which prevented an air show from taking place.
A large military parade is also planned for Tuesday in the center of Seoul, the first to be held in the South Korean capital in the last decade.
After the failure of the 2019 denuclearization negotiations, tension has soared again on the Korean Peninsula, with Pyongyang rejecting any offer of dialogue and carrying out a record number of missile tests, while Seoul and Washington have resumed its large-scale joint maneuvers and periodically deployed US strategic assets in the region. EFE
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