Todd Bishop
South Korean Defense Minister Zheng Jingdou said on July 31 that if the North Korean regime and the North Korean army pose a provocation and threat to South Korea, they will naturally be included in the “enemy” range. The South Korean media described this as the toughest wording for North Korea since Zheng Jingdou took office as the defense chief last September.
In January 2019, the new version of the “2018 National Defense White Paper” issued by the Korean Ministry of National Defense removed the previous “Keeping the North Korean regime and the army as enemies”.Towards, in general terms, all forces that threaten and infringe the sovereignty, territory, national life and property of South Korea are regarded as enemies. However, as North Korea has recently tested short-range missiles twice, the outside world is worried about the deterioration of relations between South Korea and North Korea.
Zheng Jingdou said in a forum event that the threat to South Korea’s security is not limited to North Korea’s nuclear missiles. Based on the comprehensive concept of security, all forces that threaten South Korea should be regarded as enemies.
He also said that North Korea recently launched the Korean version of the “Iskander” missile. Although it is difficult to intercept the missiles that are automatically changed in the descending section, it is still within the scope of the Korean defense. He pointed out that all of the Korean military’s operational systems are superior to North Korea, and military reconnaissance satellites are also underway. The Korean army has strong defense capabilities.
As for North Korea’s public criticism of the joint military exercise between South Korea and the United States, Zheng Jingdou said that the joint military exercise is proceeding as usual.
Zheng Jingdou also said that he will earnestly implement the “9:19 Military Agreement” between the ROK and the DPRK and lay the foundation for a permanent peace on the peninsula. He said that the implementation of the agreement will not only weaken the security of South Korea, but will also enhance security. This is because the implementation of the agreement requires Han Jun has more powerful strength and coping attitude. He said that the military agreement and the Korean military exercise are two-fold. The army that does not exercise has no value. A certain scale of the Korea-US joint military exercise and the Korean military’s independent exercise will be held as usual.
