- South Korea's spy agency said Thursday that North Korea was likely to carry out military provocations ahead of major elections in South Korea and the US.
- The military industrial sector, nuclear weapons sector and civil defense sector were urged to "further accelerate the completion of preparations for this war."
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has ordered his nation's industrial and military sectors to prepare for war with the United States, citing "unprecedented" confrontational activity by the U.S. and its allies that Kim did not specify.
Kim, speaking at a 2024 planning meeting Wednesday of the ruling Workers' Party, said an in-depth analysis indicated the "severe political and military situation" on the Korean peninsula had "reached its limit," the state-run news agency reported Thursday. The news agency said the military industrial sector, nuclear weapons sector and civil defense sector were urged to "further accelerate the completion of preparations for this war."
Last month, North Korea put a military spy satellite into orbit after two previous failed attempts.
On Wednesday, Kim pledged to expand cooperative relations with "independent, anti-imperialist countries in preparation for the rapidly changing international political landscape."
South Korea's spy agency said Thursday that North Korea was likely to carry out military provocations ahead of major elections in South Korea and the United States in 2024. The National Intelligence Service cited North Korea's track record of staging provocations before South Korea's general elections.−
Kim also has recently reinstated key figures involved in high-profile provocations against Seoul, South Korea's Yonhap News Agency reported.
Is North Korea preparing for war? It's a 'real possibility'
Harry Kazianis, senior director of National Security Affairs at the Center for the National Interest, a conservative, Washington-based public policy think tank, told USA TODAY he is concerned that war with North Korea could become a "real possibility."
Pyongyang has been working on tactical nuclear weapons for years, and just testing them could spark a crisis with Washington and Seoul, Kazianis said. He added that North Korea could test an intercontinental ballistic missile by sending it thousands of miles into the Pacific Ocean to ensure its missiles can indeed reach the U.S.
North Korea has strengthened ties with Russia
Kim has strengthened ties with Russia in recent months, and he met with Russian President Vladimir Putin met at the Vostochny Cosmodrome, a Russian spaceport, in September. Putin has been scrambling to arm his war against Ukraine, and last month U.S. authorities said Pyongyang had shipped more than 1,000 containers of military equipment and munitions to Russia.
Kim knows US is tied up with 2024 elections
Kim believes he can do a lot of provocative things and "never pay a price" as China and Russia are fully in the North Korean camp thanks to tensions with Washington, Kazianis said.
"The Kim family also knows that in 2024 America will be looking inward toward its presidential election, giving them the room to cause chaos and feel no pain," he said.