North Korean state media claimed on Thursday that dictator Kim Jong Un personally drove a new tank and let out a “stormy cheer of hurray” during an exercise possibly in preparation for a ground war with South Korea.
In his remarks at the event, which was said to have been held on Wednesday, Kim said that North Korea had produced “the most powerful tank in the world” and that “the new main battle tank has very good performance. “We expressed great satisfaction in the fact that we were able to demonstrate this successfully.” Hitting power and operability according to This was reported to the state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).
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“he [Kim] “It is a proud fact that the Korean People’s Army is equipped with the world’s most powerful tanks,” the Korean Central News Agency claimed. “As a result of reviewing the tank crew, [Kim] By riding a new type of main battle tank, holding the control stick and piloting the tank themselves, they further heightened the fighting spirit of our tank crews and instilled in them a firm view of the enemy and war. ”
The Korean Central News Agency said, “All the officers in the tank unit let out a roar of cheers and looked up at their invincible, intelligent commander with an iron will.”
The Korean Central News Agency released several photos purporting to show Kim driving a tank, greeting soldiers and observing military exercises.
#breaking news : Kim Jong-un personally tests a new tank in a mock battle.
According to state media KCNA, Kim and North Korean military leaders oversaw a military demonstration using a new tank, the М-2020.
He expressed “great satisfaction” with the impact of the tank… pic.twitter.com/M0JZ4DCzzx— Upuk News (@upuknews1) March 14, 2024
korean newspaper South Korea JoongAng Ilbo report Outside experts say the tank shown in the photo is “an improved version of a similar vehicle first displayed in October 2020 at a military parade in Pyongyang to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the founding of North Korea’s Workers’ Party of Korea. ”.
The display was an apparent attempt to intimidate South Korea from participating in a ground invasion, and took place in parallel to a joint military operation between South Korea and the U.S. military, a regular exercise known as “Freedom Shield.” South Korea’s military announced similar tank drills on Thursday, seen as a countermeasure against North Korea.According to Korea News Agency United300 military personnel from the United States and South Korea took part in the field training exercise, which “mobilized the Army’s K1A2 tank and K21 armored vehicle, as well as the South Korea-U.S. Combined Engineers’ M1150 assault breakthrough vehicle.”
U.S. soldiers walk past a South Korean K1A2 tank after a live-fire exercise at the Pocheon military training range as part of the annual South Korean-U.S. joint Freedom Shield military exercise on March 14, 2024. (JUNG YEON-JE/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)
North Korea has increased the frequency of its military exercises and belligerent behavior over the past four years in response to both the administration of U.S. President Joe Biden and the continued term of conservative South Korean President Yun Seok-Yeol. North Korea started the year with a major change in the way it deals with South Korea in its official propaganda. Previously, this country was called “South”. [sic] The phrase “South Korea” was an attempt to indicate that the Seoul government was not legitimate and that the territory was legally part of unified communist Korea, but ultimately the capitalization of the country’s name accepted.
In January, Kim Jong-un declared, “The final conclusion drawn from the bitter history of inter-Korean relations is that we cannot walk together on the path of national restoration and reunification.” “We don’t want war, but we’re not going to avoid war.”
Kim argued that the military should prepare to “occupy, conquer and take back” South Korea.
Kim also referred to South Korea by its official name, the Republic of Korea.
A KCNA report released in January said, “The historic moment has finally come to define the Republic of Korea (ROK) as the nation most hostile to the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.” He pursued with bloodshot eyes the history of vicious conflicts in order to overthrow our government…He emphasized that our nation must recognize this inevitable and irreversible reality as it is. ”
In this photo provided by the North Korean government, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un speaks at the Supreme People’s Assembly in Pyongyang, North Korea, on January 15, 2024. (Korean Central News Agency/Korea News Agency, Associated Press)
“Korean scum is our main enemy,” Kim reportedly said. Said.
Later that month, North Korean media claimed that North Korea possesses nuclear-capable underwater attack drones.
“The Underwater Weapon Systems Research Institute under the North Korean Academy of Defense Sciences conducted an important test of the underwater nuclear weapon system “Hail-5-23” under development in the East Sea of Korea.” KCNA report. “Our military’s underwater nuclear counterattack posture has been further strengthened, and a range of response actions at sea and underwater will continue to deter hostile military actions by the naval forces of the United States and its allies.”
This development was separate from claims in September that North Korea now possesses underwater nuclear submarines.
Despite claims of advanced nuclear military technology and years of conducting nuclear weapons tests, the South Korean government claimed that On Thursday, in response to a question about growing cooperation between North Korea and the government of Moscow strongman Vladimir Putin, he said he does not recognize North Korea as a nuclear state.
