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North Korea criticized the US decision to provide Australia with nuclear-powered submarines, calling the deal “extremely unpopular and dangerous,” and warning that if it harms North Korea’s security, it will take unspecified countermeasures.
The official media published comments on Monday by an unidentified senior official of the North Korean Ministry of Foreign Affairs, calling the agreement between the United States, the United Kingdom and Australia “an extremely unfavorable and dangerous act that would disrupt the strategic balance in the Asia-Pacific region”, adding that This may trigger a “chain reaction of the arms race.”
The head of the Foreign Information Section of the North Korean Ministry of Foreign Affairs told the official North Korean Central News Agency that North Korea will “take corresponding countermeasures to prevent any negative impact on national security.”
The U.S., Australia and the U.K. announced Trilateral Security Partnership Last week, they said they would share the technology to equip Australia with at least eight nuclear-powered but “conventionally armed” submarines.
The agreement triggered Angry reaction In France, this long-term ally has signed a contract with Australia to supply 12 conventional submarines to Australia, leading to Paris Recall its ambassador From Canberra and Washington, DC.
North Korea continues to develop its military arsenal, launching a missile from a train last week [File: Korean Central News Agency via Reuters]Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison said that this shift reflects the deteriorating strategic environment in the Asia-Pacific region, and clearly mentions China’s continued military expansion.
The North Korean official clearly mentioned France’s complaints, accused the United States of adopting a “two-faced” attitude, and pointed out that even the country’s allies accused it of stabbing a knife in the back.
The official said that the agreement will undermine “regional peace and security and the international non-proliferation system, and intensify the arms race,” which echoes the views of China and some other countries.
The KCNA reported: “The current situation once again shows that (our) efforts to strengthen national defense capabilities from a long-term perspective should not be relaxed in the slightest.”
Earlier this month, Pyongyang held a large-scale paramilitary parade to commemorate the country’s founding, and after announcing the testing of a “strategic” long-range cruise missile last week, it tested a railway in ignorance of UN sanctions. Launched ballistic missiles.
Recent satellite images also show that North Korea is expanding Uranium enrichment plant At its main Yongbyon nuclear facility.
South Korea has also been strengthening its military capabilities. Soon after news of a missile test in Pyongyang came out, it announced that it had tested a submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM).
Seoul and Washington have been trying to revive the denuclearization negotiations that have stalled since 2019.
President Joe Biden emphasized the need for continued diplomacy, but said that the United States will not enter into a “big deal” with Pyongyang, and Pyongyang will link denuclearization with major sanctions and relief.
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