The formidable sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un claimed on Monday that the country’s warplanes successfully repelled a U.S. spy plane that flew over its exclusive economic zone. She issued a stern warning of “shocking” consequences if the U.S. persists in conducting reconnaissance activities in the area.
Kim Yo Jong’s remarks were made shortly after the nation threatened to shoot down American reconnaissance aircraft and expressed condemnation over Washington’s plans to deploy a nuclear missile submarine near the Korean Peninsula.
The U.S. and South Korean militaries have yet to respond to Kim’s comments. Kim, being one of her brother’s top officials in foreign policy, published her statements in state media on Monday evening.
Earlier on Monday, North Korea’s Defense Ministry released a statement accusing the U.S. of sending spy planes into its “inviolable airspace” and cautioning that any approaching aircraft may be shot down.
In response, South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff denied claims that the U.S. had sent spy planes into North Korean territory. Spokesperson Lee Sung Joon stated during a briefing that the U.S. was conducting routine reconnaissance activities in coordination with South Korea’s military.
Kim, apparently in rebuttal to this statement, accused the Joint Chiefs of Staff of acting as a mouthpiece for the U.S. military. She further claimed that the U.S. has been escalating its reconnaissance activities, thereby violating North Korea’s sovereignty and safety.
Although the North Korean Defense Ministry’s statement seemed to imply an intrusion into the country’s territorial airspace, Kim accused the U.S. of flying spy planes over North Korea’s exclusive economic zone. This zone consists of the area within 200 nautical miles of its territory, where North Korea has rights to natural resources.
Kim stated that a U.S. spy plane had crossed the eastern sea boundary between the Koreas at around 5 a.m. on Monday and conducted reconnaissance activities over North Korea’s exclusive economic zone before being chased away by North Korean warplanes. She added that the U.S. aircraft crossed the eastern sea boundary once again at around 8:50 a.m., resulting in North Korea’s military issuing an unspecified “strong warning” toward the United States.
Kim declared that North Korea would take decisive action if the U.S. continues to fly reconnaissance planes over its exclusive economic zone. However, she clarified that North Korea would not respond directly to U.S. reconnaissance activities outside of the zone.
“A shocking incident will eventually occur in the 20-40 kilometer section where U.S. spy planes frequently intrude into the sky above North Korea’s economic water zone,” she warned.
“Nuclear blackmail”
The official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) of North Korea also criticized the planned deployment of U.S. strategic nuclear assets to the Korean Peninsula as “the most blatant nuclear blackmail” against North Korea. The statement emphasized that this posed a serious threat to regional and global security.
“The current situation clearly demonstrates that the Korean Peninsula is moving closer to the brink of nuclear conflict due to the provocative military actions of the U.S.,” the KCNA report read.
In April, the U.S. announced its intention to send a nuclear-armed ballistic submarine for the first visit to a South Korean port in decades, without specifying the exact timing.
North Korea made headlines in April when its military leaders claimed to have successfully test-fired a solid-fuel intercontinental ballistic missile, a significant breakthrough in the country’s pursuit of a more powerful and harder-to-detect missile capable of reaching the continental U.S.
In May, North Korea acknowledged a failed attempt to launch a spy satellite into space, an action seen as a provocative move by neighboring countries and the United States. The failed launch prompted emergency alerts in Seoul and on the southern Japanese island of Okinawa.
South Korea’s President Yoon Suk Yeol has responded by strengthening defense cooperation with Washington, conducting joint military exercises involving advanced stealth jets and powerful U.S. strategic assets.
President Yoon is scheduled to attend a NATO summit in Lithuania this week, where he will seek enhanced cooperation with NATO members regarding the growing nuclear and missile threats posed by North Korea, according to his office.
AFP contributed to this report.
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