Key Takeaways:
- The United States and South Korea will conduct joint military drills in March
- North Korea has threatened Washington and Seoul of an unprecedently strong response to the military exercises
- Kim Jong Un's Government has warned that it will use nuclear weapons as deterrents against US-South Korean threats
YEREVAN (CoinChapter.com) — Tensions between North Korea and the United States have escalated in recent months. In the latest development spiral into a full-scale war, Pyongyang has threatened Washington with an unprecedently strong response if the Biden Administration goes ahead with the US-South Korea joint military drills.
Scheduled for next week, the two allies will conduct the tabletop exercises as a part of their discussion to counter the increasing threats emerging from Kim Jong Un’s Government.
“In case the US and South Korea carry into practice their already-announced plan for military drills … they will face unprecedentedly persistent and strong counteractions… If it is the US option to show its muscle and counter everything with muscle, the same is true of the DPRK’s option,”
South Korea’s Yonhap News Agency reported quoting a spokesperson of North Korea’s foreign ministry.
The two allies will also hold an 11-day joint field training exercise in mid-March in South Korea.
North Korea has constantly threatened its Southern Neighbor, test-firing several ballistic missiles as warnings. With the United States pledged to back Seoul in case of aggression from Pyongyang, Jong Un has also threatened Washington with a full-scale war.
Kim Jong Un’s Foreign Ministry Spokesperson also described the US-South Korean joint military drills as “their dangerous attempt to gain a long-term military edge” over North Korea. Moreover, the Korean official claimed the exercises could plunge the Peninsula “into the grave vortex of escalating tension.”
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North Korea will deploy nuclear force against the US
Earlier this month, North Korea said it would not hesitate to use the “most overwhelming nuclear force” against the United States. According to the country, the threat was yet another response to the increasing expansion of US-South Korea military drills.
Kim Jong Un’s administration has called the growing military alliance an “extreme red line.”
During his official visit to Seoul last month, US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin announced that the Biden Administration would increase its deployment of advanced weapons in response to a growing North Korean nuclear threat. The advanced arsenal will include fighter jets, aircraft carriers, and bombers.
“In 2022, we confronted an unprecedented number of provocations from the DPRK. Our commitment to the defense of the ROK remains ironclad. The United States stands firm in its extended deterrence commitment, and that includes the full range of U.S. defense capabilities, including our conventional, nuclear, and missile defense capabilities,”
Lloyd Austin said during a joint press conference with South Korean Defense Minister Lee Jong-sup Lee.
The US currently has 28,500 uniformed personnel in South Korea. According to Washington, it is one of the largest US troop deployments around the world.
With the tensions between North Korea and the United States deepening over South Korea, the Biden Administration might open a new proxy war front. Washington is already indirectly involved in the ongoing year-long war in Ukraine. In addition, a full-scale war could erupt between China and Taiwan, thanks to threats from Beijing.
With the crisis in the Korean Peninsula also threatening a wide-scale escalation, Pentagon might find itself busy with multiple conflicts. Moreover, the already hard-hit US Economy will suffer if US President Joe Biden goes ahead with such plans.
