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In the shadow of the wars in Ukraine and the Middle East, North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un (40) is apparently making dark plans. To test nuclear energy, according to his own statements, he has already fired four cruise missiles since the beginning of this year.
A political blow followed on Thursday: the Supreme People’s Assembly decided to end economic cooperation with South Korea. This means that the last bond between the two states has been broken. To achieve this, the dictator focuses more on Russia: Pyongyang helps Moscow with supplies of missiles and ammunition for the war of aggression in Ukraine, while North Korea receives support in the field of technology and the construction of satellites.
There is fear of a major war in South Korea. And people wonder: what is Kim Jong Un up to? Blick assesses the situation.
This means the end of economic cooperation
The dissolution of the treaty marks the end of the attempt to reunite the two countries South and North Korea. On January 15, Kim Jong Un announced that he was no longer seeking reunification and that his country wanted to remain independent. He described South Korea as the “immutable main enemy.”
The word “reunification” was removed from the constitution and the reunification arch in Pyongyang was also destroyed. Until now, the division of Korea in 1945 was always seen as a temporary situation.
The 2005 Inter-Korean Economic Relations Law and the 2011 Mount Kumgang Special Zone Law, which regulated tourism investments by South Korean and other foreign companies in the area, were canceled this week.
For years, the South mainly supplied the North with fertilizer to stave off hunger. There was even an inter-Korean summit in 2018. Since North Korea conducted missile tests, relations have once again deteriorated dramatically.
South Korea reacts in surprise
South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol, 63, described the change in North Korea’s inter-Korean policy in a television interview as “an extraordinary change.” It’s hard to understand what’s behind that. Although Yoon takes a tough stance on North Korea, he is still willing to approach the North. Even a summit with Kim Jong-un is possible if it benefits the North Korean economy.
A Ministry of Unification official told South Korean media that this did not constitute a cancellation of the agreements for his country because it was a unilateral decision by North Korea. “However, the ministry believes that North Korea’s latest decision will only further isolate the country.”
The danger of a new war is so great
The two North Korean and nuclear researchers Robert L. Carlin and Siegfried S. Hecker do not rule out war in an article for the Washington think tank Stimson Center. After the failure of the second summit with US President Donald Trump in 2019 and the associated loss of face, Kim Jong-un may feel forced to go to war because the end of sanctions cannot be achieved peacefully.
The two write: “The situation on the Korean Peninsula is more dangerous than it has been since early June 1950.” The Korean War began in June 1950 and ended three years later with an armistice but no peace treaty. According to estimates, more than four million people died.
The timing for a surprise attack would be ideal: the West is distracted and preoccupied with the wars in Ukraine and the Middle East. Moreover, North Korea has found an ally in Russia and is making good progress in its rearmament. On the other hand, it makes no strategic sense to sell missiles and ammunition to Russia if you want to start a war yourself.
A misunderstanding is classified as dangerous, that is, when a maneuver goes wrong and the other side interprets it as a declaration of war.
This is how far North Korea has come with the atomic bomb
According to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), North Korea recently commissioned a second nuclear reactor. At the end of December, IAEA director Rafael Grossi (63) called this a “cause for concern”.
Apparently North Korea already has nuclear bombs. Estimates range from a few dozen to over a hundred nuclear warheads. In the Frankfurter Rundschau, Ramon Pacheco Pardo of King’s College London suspects that Pyongyang is working to downsize these warheads so that they can be mounted on intercontinental ballistic missiles. But it is also possible that Kim Jong Un wants to build and test an even bigger nuclear bomb.
According to Pardo, Kim’s biggest concern with his nuclear program is one thing: “A test would make it clear to the international community that North Korea is a nuclear power and this can no longer be changed.”
Source: Blick
I am Amelia James, a passionate journalist with a deep-rooted interest in current affairs. I have more than five years of experience in the media industry, working both as an author and editor for 24 Instant News. My main focus lies in international news, particularly regional conflicts and political issues around the world.
