KIM YO-JONG RELEASES ANOTHER STATEMENT

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Attention is being brought to a new statement issued by the influential sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un. Two days ago, Kim Yo-jong released a statement denouncing the South Korean Defense Minister’s remarks about precision strikes on North Korea. She announced another statement, saying that the South is not a target if her country’s attack.

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Kim Yo-jong again condemned South Korean Defense Minister Suh Wook for talking about launching precision strikes on North Korea. But at the same time, she issued a new statement stressing that North Korea does not regard South Korea as a target of its attack. The second statement came two days after she issued a statement blasting Suh Wook for saying that the South Korean military has the ability to accurately and quickly hit any target in North Korea if there are clear signs that the regime has fired missiles. In the latest release, Kim Yo-jong reiterated that South Korea is not a principal enemy of her country. She also said that the South will not become a target unless it takes any military action against the North. Kim added that North Korea will not fire a single bullet towards South Korea. She explained it is not because the South is no match for her nuclear-armed country but rather, because the two Koreas are of the same people who are not supposed to fight against each other. However, Kim again used harsh language and lashed out at Minister Suh Wook. She repeatedly took issue with his precision strike remarks, calling it a very dangerous mistake. Her second statement was reported in the Rodong Sinmun that is read by the North Korean people. On Monday, Pyongyang also mobilized propaganda outlets and criticized the South Korean military that conducted a joint missile strike exercise in response to the North’s ICBM launch on March 24. A day earlier, in addition to Kim Yo-jong’s statement, Workers’ Party Secretary Pak Jong-chon issued a separate statement threatening to take military action against the South. There were views that North Korea will likely take aggressive moves ahead of the 110th birth anniversary of its late founder Kim Il-sung and a South Korea-U.S. joint military drill this month. Eyes are on why Pyongyang has watered down its rhetoric in the latest statement and what moves it will take next.