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| This undated photo released by Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK)’s official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) on Dec 11, 2016 shows DPRK leader Kim Jong-Un (C) during a combat drill of the service personnel of the special operation battalion of the Korean People's Army Unit 525. (AFP Photo/KCNA via KNS) |
SEOUL – Leader of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) Kim Jong-un guided a special operations drill targeting the Republic of Korea (ROK), the DPRK’s media reported on Sunday.
The development took place as the ROK remained on alert for any attempt by the DPRK to take advantage of political turmoil in the ROK.
The DPRK’s KCNA state news agency report did not say when DPRK forces conducted the combat exercise, nor did it mention the ROK parliament's vote on Friday to impeach its president, Park Geun-hye.
Pictures in a Sunday report on the exercise in the DPRK’s Rodong Sinmun newspaper showed what appeared to be a mockup of ROK presidential Blue House as a target.
Park will remain in the Blue House, though her powers have been suspended and assumed by the ROK prime minister while the Constitutional Court weighs parliament's impeachment vote.
Well done, the enemy troops will have no space to hide themselves, far from taking any counteraction
Kim Jong-un, Leader, Democratic People's Republic of Korea
ROK Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-ahn has urged a high state of military alert in case of any provocation by the DPRK, including possible cyberattacks.
"We are ready to retaliate if North Korea makes any provocations and we condemn its malicious threat," a ROK military official told Reuters.
Tension on the divided Korean peninsula has been high this year after two DPRK nuclear tests and an unprecedented flurry of ballistic missile tests.
The DPRK tests have brought tighter UN Security Council sanctions but no indication the DPRK and its young leader Kim are willing to compromise on its nuclear and missile program.
The Rodong Sinmun pictures included one of Kim observing the exercise through binoculars.
"Watching the brave service personnel independently and pro-actively perform their combat duty destroying specified targets of the enemy, he said with a broad smile on his face: 'Well done, the enemy troops will have no space to hide themselves, far from taking any counteraction'," KCNA cited Kim saying.
