North Korea: Kim Jong-un ready for war
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un ordered today in the country's troops at the border to be ready for battle, as the peninsula rekindled tension.
The troops of the Korean People's Army (KPA) located at the border must be "fully ready for battle and make unannounced business" today, ordered by Kim Jong-un, according to the official news agency of the country KCNA.
This decision was taken at a meeting of the Central Military Commission convened extraordinarily yesterday evening, several hours after the exchange of artillery fire between the two Koreas. From fire there were no casualties or damage, according to preliminary information.
Shortly before 16:00 local time yesterday, the South Koreans have identified artillery projectile was thrown from the territory of North Korea to the western side of the border, according to a spokesman. The missile "landed on our side, but did not hit any military objective," he added.
A few minutes later, North Korea fired artillery shells and other towards a speaker, but the shells crashed into the South Korean side of the demilitarized zone (DMZ) that extends two kilometers in width on both sides of the border between the two countries.
In retaliation, the South Korean unit "threw dozens of 155 mm artillery shells" to the point where "the DPRK army had opened fire," according to the ministry announced.
Pyongyang then sent an ultimatum 48 hours in Seoul to remove the loudspeakers broadcasting propaganda messages at the border, or face military action.
The ultimatum, which expires tomorrow at 11.00 GMT, was rejected by the South Korean defense minister, who assured that the transmission from the loudspeakers will continue.
The US military, which has 28,500 men in South Korea, said it is closely monitoring the situation. "The safety of our staff and their families is essential. We will take preventive measures to guarantee" he says.
"Such challenges reinforce tensions and urge Pyongyang to refrain from any action and speech which threaten peace and security in the region," responded the spokesman of the Foreign Ministry's US Katrina Adams, according to South Korean news agency Yonhap. "The US remains stable in their commitment to defend its allies and will continue to cooperate with the Republic of (South) Korea."
Japan urged North Korea to show restraint.
Resurgence of tension
The exchange of fire and the ultimatum marked at a time of renewed tension on the peninsula, after the attack by anti-personnel mines that yielded Seoul to Pyongyang and the launch this week of joint military exercises in South Korea with the US.
North Korea said yesterday that he had sent a letter Wednesday to the UN Security Council for convening an extraordinary meeting to discuss the issue of joint exercises.
In early August, two South Korean soldiers maimed by the explosion of antipersonnel mines were making while patrolling the demilitarized zone.
Seoul blames Pyongyang for placing mine these and reprisals ordered the reopening of the propaganda war on the border with the reopening for the first time in 11 years loudspeakers installed in the field.
The north denied any role in the case of mine and threatened to bomb "indiscriminately" loudspeakers, whether propaganda messages do not stop in this area.
The North Korean authorities have also threatened military retaliation following the refusal of Seoul and Washington to cancel their joint exercises.
The last direct attack against the South was in December 2010, when North Korea had bombarded the South Korean island Geonpiongk causing the death of two soldiers and two citizens of South Korea. Seoul had responded by throwing grenade against North Korean positions.
The two rival states remain technically at war after the Korean War, which ended with a simple ceasefire and not a truce treaty.
For decades, the Korean peninsula shaken by sudden tension that almost always follow the same pattern: threats increasingly intense by Pyongyang then unwinding and return to calm.
