North Korea Accuses US Of Hostility For S. Korean Missile Decision

SEOUL, South Korea — North Korea Accuses US and said Monday that the United States permitting South Korea to develop more powerful missiles was an example of the US’ hostile strategy against the North, warning that it may result in an “acute and unstable situation” on the Korean Peninsula.

It’s North Korea’s first reaction to the May 21 summit between US and South Korean leaders, during which the US lifted decades-old constraints on missile development in South Korea and authorized its partner to develop missiles with unrestricted ranges.

The claim that US policy is hostile to North Korea is significant because North Korea has stated that it would not return to negotiations and will expand its nuclear weapons as long as US hostility remains. However, the newest statement was credited to a single pundit rather than a government organization, indicating that North Korea may still wish to leave the ground for possible negotiations with the Biden administration.

According to the official Korean Central News Agency, Kim Myong Chol, an international affairs critic, stated, “The termination step is a vivid reminder of the US hostile stance against (North Korea) and its disgusting double-dealing.” “Despite its lip respect to the discussion, it is preoccupied with confrontation.”

“However, the United States is misguided. It is a severe mistake for it to put pressure on (North Korea) by establishing an asymmetric imbalance in and around the Korean Peninsula, as this might lead to the acute and unstable situation on the peninsula, which is currently technically at war,” he added.

Out of fears over a regional weapons race, the US has previously forbidden South Korea from producing a missile with a range of more than 800 kilometers (500 miles). The range is sufficient for a South Korean weapon to reach all of North Korea, but it is insufficient to hit possible important targets in China and Japan.

Some South Korean observers applauded the lifting of the limits as restoring military sovereignty, while others felt the US intention was to strengthen its ally’s military capabilities in the face of China’s rivalry.

The expert commentator Kim accused the US of attempting to start an arms race, stifle North Korean development, and deploy intermediate-range missiles to strike nations around the Korean Peninsula.

The South Korean government said it “prudently observes” North Korea’s response, but Unification Ministry spokeswoman Lee Jong-Joo declined to comment more because the statements were ascribed to an individual rather than a North Korean government statement.

The North Korean announcement comes as the Biden administration formulates a fresh approach to North Korea in the midst of long-stalled nuclear talks. Biden and South Korean President Moon Jae-in said at their meeting that a new US strategy on North Korea “takes a measured and practical approach that is open to and will pursue negotiation.”

According to US insiders, Biden will pursue a policy that falls between Donald Trump’s direct talks with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and Barack Obama’s “strategic patience.” According to several experts, Biden is unlikely to offer North Korea considerable sanctions relief unless it first takes tangible moves toward disarmament.

The North Korean statement obliquely questioned the Biden administration’s evaluation, claiming that other countries saw the new stance as “simply deceit.”