UPDATE: A North Korean foreign ministry spokesperson just warned that North Korea would exercise its right to launch nuclear preemptive strikes on the “invaders strongholds.” as long as the United States is pushing to ignite a nuclear war against the North. Or something to that effect.
ORIGINAL POST: OK, North Korea’s Rodong Shinmun is warning it can turn not only Seoul, but also Washington DC into seas of fire.
In a front page article in North Korea’s paper of record, a military spokesman also swore to plant the North Korean and Supreme Commander flags on Mt. Hallasan. If I might give a word of advice, be sure to start up the mountain early, because you’ve got to reach the last shelter before 12:30pm or they won’t let hike to the peak. They’re real ball busters with that sort of thing, too.
Ye Olde Chosun is actually concerned about the level of North Korean rhetoric, quoting experts who feel Tuesday’s threats by Gen. Kim Yong-chol—the guys who overseas North Korean operations against South Korea, including the Cheonan sinking—go above and beyond the usual talk you get from Pyongyang.
One source familiar with the North told the paper its rather extraordinary to have a guy who should operate in the shadows go on the evening news and issue threats for 10 minutes.
The Rodong Shinun article was apparently accompanied by a big photo of a multiple rocket launcher unit. A government official told the Chosun that North Korea has around 4,800 MLR tubes that can hit the Seoul area, including about 200 of the 240mm variety, but Pyongyang was unlikely to do something like that because an attack on the Seoul area meant a full-scale war was on.
An artillery or rocket strike in the West Sea was much more likely. But with the South Korean military making it quite clear they’d retaliate after such a strike, the North might instead go the terrorism route. A senior fellow at the Police Science Institute said he found it disquieting that the guy tasked with issuing the latest threats happens to head the North Korean bureau that specializes in agent infiltration and terrorism, and that the North might try to catch Seoul off-guard with an act of urban terrorism, destroying infrastructure or a cyber-attack. In a chart, the Chosun Ilbo notes that an advantage of the terrorism option is that South Korea wouldn’t be able to respond until it had determined North Korea was behind it.
In addition to the Cheonan sinking, Gen. Kim’s office is also believed to have carried out a DDoS attack on South Korea in 2009 and another attack on Nonghyup in 2011.
{ 20 comments… read them below or add one }
Wait, it was all about small tactical nukes yesterday and now its back to sea of fire? Can these retards get their threats straight?
The Norks have been watching too many recent American movies like the recent Red Dawn remake and Olympus has Fallen.
They could really rack up some Jeju Air miles flying soldiers to Hallasan. But I suppose they might have a layover at Gimpo.
Why are the North Korean Klowns so angry these days? Is it because they shot themselves in the foot with another nuke test? Are they just naturally angry, all the time? Are they quite possibly the angriest, most vile, and hate-filled race of people on the face of the planet? I think they got better results by playing the victim card. This whole “pretend to be the aggressor” strategy has gotten them nothing but sanction after sanction. Have they ever made a military move or threat that didn’t immediately backfire in their faces? It’s like the Wile-Coyote cartoons, and North Korea is the Coyote every time.
This is balderdash. Critical analysis of the data yields about only 17 North Korean guns that can hit Seoul. With competent counter battery radar those guns can be knocked out in less than 30 minutes.
http://www.militaryphotos.net/forums/showthread.php?162240-Bluffer-s-Guide-North-Korea-strikes!-%282009%29
http://www.businessinsider.com/map-of-the-day-how-north-korea-could-destroy-seoul-in-two-hours-2010-5?op=1
Well, what the Chosun said was hit the 수도권, which as you know includes not only Seoul, but surrounding areas of Gyeonggi-do. So they might still be correct.
Rob,
You’re safe and that’s all that really matters any ways…
I think this really shows that it’s the generals running the show up there, and not Kid Kim.
They are scared of the sanctions that the UN will impose and so are trying to intimidate it with their rhetoric. Yes, North Korea is like a high strung chihuahua. Its bark is stronger than its bite…and one kick will send it whimpering away.
Attacking South Korea from the south (Jeju-do) would be the smartest thing the North has thought up.
Once they landed on the southern tip of South Korea, they basically have South Korea surrounded.
If the North could easily tow the USS Pueblo in 1999 from Wonsan on the east coast, around the Korean Peninsula, to the port of Nampo on the west coast – it would be easy for them to also move their navy around the southern tip and attack from the south and then from all sides.
It is NOT going to happen anyway, a terrorism attack on another KAL airline or cyber attacks is more likely.
Attacking South Korea from the south (Jeju-do) would be the smartest thing the North has thought up.
Once they landed on the southern tip of South Korea, they basically have South Korea surrounded.
If the North could easily tow the USS Pueblo in 1999 from Wonsan on the east coast, around the Korean Peninsula, to the port of Nampo on the west coast – it would be easy for them to also move their navy around the southern tip and attack from the south and then from all sides.
It is NOT going to happen anyway, a terrorism attack on another KAL airline or cyber attacks is more likely.
This latest round of rhetoric is rather weird, I have to say. I don’t quite understand what’s going on. The cyberwarfare or urban warfare seems like something the NORKs might do, but even that is dangerous. We have appeased the NORKs long enough, we need to scare them into, well, shutting up. I know why we continue to engage them, of course — the number of people who would die if the war started up again. If I had not lived in South Korea and didn’t have a lot of people I cared about who still live there I would say screw it and start to really pick on the NORKs till they freaked out. But this is not a video game. There are real lives at stake and we need to continue to engage the NORKs….but I don’t know if they’re still “rational actors.” They certainly aren’t acting like it. But who knows.
Hey North Korea. It’s all fun and games until someone’s mansion get’s targeted by JDAMs, huh?
http://goldsea.com/Text/index.php?id=14270
two words: supply line,
A little off topic, but I remember hearing this urban myth-ish story that Ilsan was initially built specifically for the purpose of being a human shield for Seoul in the event of a NK artillery attack. Any truths to that?
“Are they quite possibly the angriest, most vile, and hate-filled race of people on the face of the planet?” Read “The Cleanest Race”
Save honeymoon island!
They have plenty of Scuds and KN02s all with range to spare.
How many fires can the Seoul City Fire Department handle at one time? They had one hell of a time putting out a gas stove fire near my work one day and there were no artillery rounds landing at the time or panicked drivers.
Those 17 guns in your estimate can collectively pump out around 102 rounds a minute by the way. That’s going to be an awfully long 30 minutes if counterbattery works according to your time table.
The other issue is not only the 수도권 but Koyang, Ilsan, Munsan and Paju with nearly 1 Million collective inhabitants. I wouldn’t be so quick to poo poo away the Nork threat.
Read it, just didn’t want to believe most of it. Intellectually I know it’s true though.
I thought those were Phillies fans.
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