SEOUL, South Korea — President Park Geun-hye of South Korea ordered the country’s military Monday to deliver a strong and immediate response to any North Korean provocation, the latest turn in a war of words that has become a test of resolve for the relatively unproven leaders in both the North and South.
“I consider the current North Korean threats very serious,” Park told the South’s generals. “If the North attempts any provocation against our people and country, you must respond strongly at the first contact with them without any political consideration.
“As top commander of the military, I trust your judgment in the face of North Korea’s unexpected surprise provocation,” she added.
Meanwhile, the White House says that despite bellicose rhetoric from North Korea, the Obama administration has not seen changes in the regime’s military posture.
White House press secretary Jay Carney said Monday the U.S. has not detected any military mobilization or repositioning of forces from Pyongyang to back up the threats from North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un.
Since Kim Jong-Un took power after the death of his father, Kim Jong-Il, in late 2011, the North has taken a series of provocative steps and amplified threats against Washington and Seoul to much louder and more menacing levels. The North has launched a three-stage rocket, tested a nuclear device and threatened to hit major U.S. cities with nuclear-armed ballistic missiles. And Kim Jong Un has declared that the Korean Peninsula has reverted to a “state of war.” Park’s comments stand in contrast to the usually dismissive tone that South Korean leaders take toward the North’s threats.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
