Park Ji-won "North Korean Missiles Intended to Obstruct Biden's Reelection"

North Korea launched the Hwasong-18 intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) using solid fuel the day before, drawing attention to the reasons behind it. Former National Intelligence Service Director Park Ji-won analyzed, "It is to disrupt President Biden's re-election next year."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

On the 13th, former Director Park said on SBS's 'Kim Tae-hyun's Political Show,' "Kim Jong-un, the General Secretary of the Workers' Party, attempted missile launches and nuclear tests during the previous Biden-Trump presidential election and Biden's midterm elections but refrained due to misjudgment and being deceived. Therefore, I predicted that he would definitely proceed to disrupt President Biden's re-election next year."

In response to the host's question, "Does this mean North Korea judged that President Trump's election was favorable to them?" he said, "In any case, they are trying to disrupt President Biden's re-election," adding, "And now President Yoon Suk-yeol is taking a strong hardline stance, so this is North Korea's reaction to that."

He suggested that the Yoon Suk-yeol administration's 'hardline' approach toward North Korea is encouraging missile launches. He said, "President Yoon's hardline stance ultimately gives North Korea more time to expand their nuclear and ICBM facilities and improve their technology. That's how I see it."

Earlier, North Korea sent an unusual message threatening to shoot down a U.S. reconnaissance aircraft for allegedly violating its airspace. Former Director Park said, "I believe, as stated by our Ministry of National Defense and the U.S. military, that the U.S. reconnaissance aircraft did not violate North Korean airspace," adding, "(Although) I do not want to expand this to political purposes, currently, General Secretary Kim is sensitive and tends to take a very strong stance against South Korea or the U.S., which is not unusual."

Regarding Kim Yo-jong, the Vice Department Director of the Workers' Party, recently using the term 'Republic of Korea' in her statement, he said, "I consider it very aggressive," and "I interpreted it as the inter-Korean relations shifting from amicable to hostile."

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