US Warns North Korea Against Nuclear Attack

A nuclear strike by Kim Jong Un would spell the end of his regime, U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said on Wednesday as the North Korean leader carried out a fresh intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) launch.

Austin and his South Korean counterpart Kim Yong-hyun, in Washington for the 56th U.S.-South Korean Security Consultative Meeting, called their alliance “the linchpin of peace, stability, and prosperity on the Korean Peninsula,” according to a post-conference joint communiqué.

The pair expressed “grave concern” over North Korea’s continued expansion and modernization of its ballistic missile and nuclear programs and condemned Kim’s frequent missile launches, spy satellite launch attempts, and sanction-busting arms shipments to Russia.

Austin reaffirmed Washington’s unwavering commitment to South Korea’s defense through extended deterrence via both the U.S. nuclear umbrella and conventional military capabilities. “He emphasized that any nuclear attack by the DPRK (Democratic People’s Republic of Korea) against the United States or its allies and partners is unacceptable and would lead to the end of the Kim regime,” the communiqué added, using North Korea’s official name.

The statement echoed past warnings by Austin, U.S. President Joe Biden, and South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol.

The two leaders also praised the outcomes of their militaries’ recent large-scale exercises in South Korea and stressed future joint training should feature “appropriate and realistic” wartime scenarios, including those involving a North Korean nuclear attack.

“The nuclear and missile threat from North Korea is now an existential threat, not only to the ROK (Republic of Korea), but also to the Indo-Pacific region,” Defense Minister Kim told reporters in a press briefing following the talks, using the South’s official name.

The defense chiefs also “strongly condemned in the strongest terms with one voice” the expansion of North Korea’s military ties with Russia, which have gone from weapons transfers to deploying thousands of troops to aid in Moscow’s illegal war against Ukraine. The pair pledged to closely coordinate with the international community on the matter, according to the communiqué.

Kim told the press that, while he does not believe having North Korean boots on the ground in Russia increases the chances of inter-Korean war, “North Korea is very likely to ask for technology transfers in diverse areas.”

These could include technologies to advance the communist country’s ICBM, tactical nuclear weapons, ballistic missile submarines, and surveillance satellites, Kim said, adding that these capabilities could further drive up tensions on the Korean Peninsula.

Just hours after the meeting took place, North Korea test-fired an unknown type of ICBM from near its capital of Pyongyang.

In a statement carried by state media, North Korea’s Defense Ministry said the launch had showcased the “modernity and credibility” of its strategic deterrent, calling it the world’s most powerful.

The ministry accused its “rivals” of heightening tensions and threatening the North’s security through a “nuclear alliance and various adventuristic military maneuvers,” which, it said, is driving Pyongyang to further strengthen its strategic and nuclear response capabilities.

Newsweek reached out to the North Korean embassy in China with a written request for comment.

Japan’s Defense Ministry said the projectile launched at 7:11 a.m. local time and reached a maximum altitude of around 4,300 feet as it flew northeastward toward the Sea of Japan, known in Korea as the East Sea.

The missile was airborne for about 86 minutes, the longest recorded of any North Korean missile, the ministry said.

The U.S. Indo-Pacific Command issued a statement condemning the launch and demanded Pyongyang “refrain from further unlawful and destabilizing acts.”

In his 13 years as supreme leader, Kim Jong Un has ordered more than 236 tests of missiles capable of traveling at least 300 kilometers [186 miles] and carrying payloads weighing at least 500 kilograms [1,102 pounds], according to a database kept by the James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies in Monterey, California.

That is a 13-fold increase over the missile tests carried out during the 17-year rule of Kim’s father and predecessor, Kim Jong Il.