The U.S. Department of Defense announced on the 13th (local time) that it will work closely with its allies to secure nuclear deterrence in relation to North Korea’s recent adoption of a law enabling a nuclear preemptive strike.
When asked if the United States and South Korea were ready to respond to a North Korean preemptive nuclear strike, Pentagon spokeswoman Patrick Ryder said: “We have proven policies and procedures on nuclear deterrence, which include working very closely with the international alliance. will be,” he said.
He said that he saw the report and said, “What North Korea has done in the past is an extension of the comments that are not helpful and destabilize[the region].”
Regarding the possibility of North Korea testing a strategic nuclear weapon, he said, “I will not talk regarding the hypothetical situation,” he said.
Earlier, at the Supreme People’s Assembly on the 8th, North Korea adopted the Nuclear Forces Policy Act, which stipulates five conditions under which nuclear weapons can be used, including when it is determined that a nuclear or weapons of mass destruction attack is imminent.
South Korea and the United States plan to hold the High-Level Extended Deterrence Strategy Consultation Group (EDSCG) meeting at the US State Department on the 16th for the first time in four years and eight months to discuss ways to strengthen the nuclear deterrence that the United States provides to South Korea in relation to the North Korean nuclear threat.
/yunhap news