North Korea threatens Seoul with 'sea of fire'
Updated
North Korea says it will respond to US-South Korea military drills with "relentless retaliation". (Reuters)
North Korea has vowed to turn Seoul into a "sea of fire" in retaliation to a joint military exercise between the United States and South Korea.
Tens of thousands of troops will take part in the joint drill later today, which the South says is an annual event and a necessary part of the country's defence.
But the North says it is a pretext for an invasion and is warning it will respond with what it calls "relentless retaliation".
Pyongyang has also threatened to open fire across the tense land border between the two Koreas if the South continues to launch propaganda balloons into the state.
The balloons have been carrying leaflets about the recent uprising in Egypt - news that has been banned in North Korea.
But few expect the turmoil in the Middle East to spread to the hermit kingdom or disrupt the power transfer between leader Kim Jong-il and his youngest son.
TV and radio sets have their dials fixed to state broadcasters and those who manage to tune into South Korean programs face severe punishment, as do those who smuggle in DVDs and mobile phones from China.
This is a regime that rode out the great collapse of communism two decades ago and it remains a starving, secretive state bristling with a 1.2 million-strong military that is unlikely to back any uprising which will threaten its very existence.
No comments:
Post a Comment