The Hindu : International : North Korea fears pre-emptive attack by U.S.

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Apr 28, 2004

International

International

North Korea fears pre-emptive attack by U.S.

By P. S. Suryanarayana

SINGAPORE, APRIL 27. North Korea has spoken of new `indications' about preparations by the United States for a pre-emptive strike.

Commenting on what Pyongyang saw as an abdication of certain responsibilities by the U.S. under the Armistice Agreement that ended the Korean War of the early 1950s, the [North] Korean People's Army [KPA] reminded Washington that the state of "belligerent relationship'' between the two sides had not yet been resolved.

A KPA spokesman said the U.S. had now "announced suddenly that it will completely withdraw its forces from the Joint Security Area [at the truce village of Panmunjom] and the demilitarised zone and deploy soldiers of the South Korean Army [there]''.

Noting that South Korean Army "is neither a signatory to the Armistice Agreement nor a [formal] member of the allied forces'' during the Korean War, the KPA spokesman said the reported U.S. move was "in disregard of the [armistice] agreement''.

Pointing out that the U.S. had, prior to its reported move, deployed only a "small number of forces'' at the joint security area and the demilitarised zone, the North Korean spokesman said Washington's "decision [therefore] indicates that the U.S. preparations for a pre-emptive attack upon the Democratic People's Republic of Korea [the North] are under way and in the final phase''. He did not, however, go into the question whether South Korean forces would have been asked to operate at the Joint Security Area at Panmunjom if the U.S. had indeed planned to strike at North Korea any time soon.

The "unilateral measures'' now being taken by the U.S. would actually amount to the renunciation of status as a signatory to the Armistice Agreement. The current "situation compels the KPA to take whatever strong measures are necessary to protect [its] own security.''

The U.S., he said, "should not forget that both the DPRK and the U.S. are [still] technically at war''. With their "belligerent relationship'' not yet rolled back, the two were still in a state of "unstable armistice''.

Pyongyang's latest diplomatic salvo against the U.S. comes in the wake of the North Korean leader, Kim Jong-il's recent visit to China, where he held talks with its top leaders. The KPA's comment should also be seen in the context of the current efforts by China to convene a third round of multilateral talks on the North Korean nuclear arms issue.

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