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South Korea’s first F-35A stealth fighter. (Yonhap News)
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Pyongyang says it has “no choice” but to develop its own weapons
North Korea denounced South Korea’s introduction of F-35A stealth fighters as a “direct challenge” to the military agreement from the Panmunjom Declaration between the South and North Korean leaders. “We, on our part, have no other choice but to develop and test the special armaments to completely destroy the lethal weapons reinforced in South Korea,” it said. A statement attributed to the director of policy research at the Institute for American Studies in the North Korean Foreign Ministry noted that South Korea was again attempting to introduce two F-35A strategic fighters from the US after a previous delivery in March, the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported on July 11. The official was also quoted as saying that the actions by South Korean authorities would be a “head-on challenge to the Panmunjom Declaration military agreement, which clearly stipulated a full-scale suspension of military reinforcements targeting the other side.” “We, on our part, have no other choice but to develop and test the special armaments to completely destroy the lethal weapons reinforced in South Korea,” the statement said. “Inter-Korean relations cannot hold any prospect as long as the South Korean authorities do not avoid the fate of depending on outside forces, which compels them to make two steps backwards when the White House pulls down its check-bar while making one step forward when there is any sign of improved DPRK-U.S. relations,” the statement said. “The South Korean authorities had better come to their senses before it is too late, shattering the preposterous illusions that an opportunity would come for improved inter-Korean relations if they follow in the footsteps of the U.S.,” it added. The North’s denunciation of South Korea is its first since the South and North Korean and US leaders met at Panmunjom on June 30. The South Korean Air Force’s first two F-35A strategic bombers arrived at Cheongju Air Base on Mar. 29, with two more scheduled to arrive around July 15. South Korea has signed a contract to purchase 40 F-35A aircraft from the US for introduction through 2021. By Lee Je-hun, senior staff writer Please direct comments or questions to [english@hani.co.kr]
