President Moon: "North Korea Launches Missiles, But Our Missile and Defense Capabilities Are Superior" (Comprehensive)

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Ji-eun] President Moon Jae-in stated regarding North Korea's missile launches, "We possess superior missile capabilities and defense abilities." He also emphasized that strong national defense is the foundation of peace and prosperity. This appears to be a response to the opposition's attacks accusing the government of 'weakening national defense.'

On the 28th, at the graduation and commissioning ceremony of the 57th class of the Army 3rd Military Academy held at Chungseongdae Training Ground in Yeongcheon, Gyeongbuk, President Moon said, "Although North Korea has recently conducted successive missile launch tests, we have superior missile capabilities and defense abilities, and we are steadily building a reliable Korean Iron Dome and missile defense system that can flawlessly block any threats."

This emphasized the superiority of South Korea's national defense in response to North Korea's continuous missile launches. It seems to be a statement mindful of the opposition's offensive framing the Moon administration as 'weakening national defense.'

President Moon said, "The peace and prosperity we enjoy have been achieved on the foundation of strong security," adding, "The driving force that enabled us to turn the North Korean nuclear crisis into a dialogue phase and promote the Korean Peninsula peace process was strong national defense."

He also stated, "Our country bears the greatest security burden in the world," and "While the immediate priority security task is deterrence of war between the South and the North, from a broader and longer perspective, the geopolitical situation of the Korean Peninsula itself always presents a severe security environment."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

He continued, "As the international order is shaken and conflicts between major powers surface, the global security environment is rapidly changing," adding, "We must have the strength to protect ourselves under any circumstances."

President Moon explained, "Our military ranks sixth in the world in defense capability and is evolving into a cutting-edge scientific technology force through 'Defense Reform 2.0.' Early warning aircraft, Aegis ships, and high-performance radars detect security situations around the Korean Peninsula in real time, and supersonic cruise missiles, high-power ballistic missiles, and F-35A aircraft, among others, are strengthening ultra-precision strike capabilities in preparation for emergencies."

He also mentioned that last year, South Korea became the eighth country in the world to roll out the most advanced supersonic fighter, the KF-21 Boramae prototype No. 1, and the seventh country to successfully launch a submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM).

President Moon said, "Young officers, you are the main actors who will operate new combat systems and strategies," adding, "I hope you become the best military experts, lead the construction of a 'top-tier army that surpasses limits,' and become the main force in protecting and creating peace on the Korean Peninsula through responsible defense that matches our national power and military strength."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.