North Pak Jeongcheon: "If South Korea and the US attempt to use force, the terrible price... Military recklessness will not be tolerated"

Park Jeongcheon disparages ROK-US joint air exercises as "military posturing and frenzied military play"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Ki-min Lee] On the 2nd, the third day of the South Korea-U.S. joint air exercise 'Vigilant Storm,' Park Jung-chon, Vice Chairman of the Central Military Commission of the Workers' Party of Korea, threatened that if force is used against North Korea, "there will be a terrible price to pay."

Park Jung-chon, a key figure in the North Korean military, stated in a public statement released through the Korean Central News Agency on the same day, "Due to the excessive military confrontation provocations by hostile forces, a serious situation is being created on the Korean Peninsula."

He said, "I evaluate the 'Vigilant Storm' joint air exercise conducted by the U.S. and South Korea as an aggressive and provocative military exercise thoroughly aimed at our Republic, whether considering the number of deployed fighter jets and the scale of the exercise or the fact that its name is modeled after the operation name 'Desert Storm' used during the invasion of Iraq in the early 1990s," and described it as "a very unpleasant omen."

He continued, "The U.S. Department of Defense has policyized the 'end of regime' of our Republic as a major goal of its nuclear strategy, and the warlike South Korean military officials, including the Minister of National Defense of the puppet government (South Korea) and the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, have repeatedly made reckless remarks that if we use nuclear weapons, the regime must be annihilated," adding, "What is clear is that this joint air exercise, revived after five years by the U.S. and South Korea, is an extension of such provocations."

He also asserted, "The U.S. is mistaken. If the U.S. thinks it can play around on the Korean Peninsula as it did at the end of the last century by bombing powerless countries and manipulating the fate of sovereign states at will, it is a delusion and will be a fatal strategic mistake," and claimed, "The Korean Peninsula is not a place where the U.S. military bluff can be freely exercised like in other regions."

He then emphasized, "We are closely monitoring the current unstable situation on the Korean Peninsula caused by the reckless military provocations of the U.S. and South Korea," and stressed, "If this is merely taken as a threatening warning in the current situation, that itself will be a big mistake."

Park Jung-chon particularly referred to the part of the U.S. Department of Defense's '2022 Nuclear Posture Review' announced on the 27th of last month, which stated that North Korea's use of nuclear weapons would result in the end of its regime, and protested, "The insane 'military play' and provocative reckless remarks of the U.S. and South Korea must stop."

Furthermore, he declared, "No more military recklessness and provocations can be tolerated," and argued, "Those responsible in the U.S. and South Korea, who like to show off their bluff at inappropriate times, must make the right choice whether managing their face is more important or the safety of their country is more important."

South Korea and the U.S. began 'Vigilant Storm' on the 31st of last month, involving about 240 military aircraft including F-35A and F-35B. Regarding this, the North Korean Ministry of Foreign Affairs, through a spokesperson's statement the day before, hinted at the possibility of military provocation by saying, "If the U.S. continues to carry out serious military provocations, we will consider stronger next-step measures."

In response, an official from South Korea's Ministry of Unification rebutted, "North Korea is misleadingly blaming our annual and defensive exercises as the cause of heightened tensions on the Korean Peninsula," and clarified, "The current situation is clearly due to North Korea's reckless nuclear and missile development."

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