Kim Jong Un Observes Simulated Nuclear Counterattack against US and South Korea

On Monday, March 20, Kim Jong Un declared that North Korea must be prepared to launch nuclear counter strikes at any time as a deterrent against war. He accused the United States and South Korea of conducting joint military drills near the country’s border. The drills included US B-1B strategic bombers, F-35A stealth fighters from the South Korean Air Force and F-16 fighters of the US Air Force. The North Korean leader also said that a ballistic missile equipped with a mock nuclear warhead was launched on Sunday, March 19, and flew about 800 kilometers (500 miles) before hitting a target at an altitude of 800 meters (0.5 miles). Kim stated that these drills allowed North Korean troops to become “familiar with any unexpected circumstances and make them more perfectly prepared in their active posture of making an immediate and overwhelming nuclear counterattack [at] anytime.” He also said that it is “very important to continuously organize and conduct such drills under the simulated conditions of an actual war” in order to bolster up North Korea’s nuclear war deterrence exponentially.