Key facts
- North Korea warned South Korea would be a "decisive target" if it becomes a central hub in a US-led collective defense system.
- A commentary accused the US of using South Korea as a base for global hegemony and overseas conflicts.
- US Forces Korea had portrayed South Korea as a key center of collective defense.
- North Korea stated it has prepared countermeasures against security challenges.
- The US stations approximately 28,500 military personnel in South Korea.
North Korea warned on Friday that South Korea would become a "decisive target" for collective retaliation if it served as a central hub in a US-led collective defense system, state media KCNA reported.
In a KCNA commentary, Kang Chol Su, described as a department director at the Institute for Enemy State Studies, accused Washington of turning its ally South Korea into a base for pursuing global hegemony and using it as a platform to deploy first in overseas conflicts. Kang cited remarks by the commander of US Forces Korea portraying South Korea as a key center of collective defense and criticized joint drills and US deployments.
The commentary stated that Pyongyang had prepared countermeasures and would ruthlessly crush challenges to its security. US Forces Korea did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The United States stations about 28,500 military personnel in South Korea to help deter aggression from North Korea.