N. Korea warns S. Korea of deadly attack if it goes ahead with live-fire artillery drill

2010-12-18 06:22:50 GMT+7 (ICT)

PYONGYANG (BNO NEWS) -- North Korea on Friday warned the South to stop a planned live-fire artillery drill near the disputed Yeonpyeong Island, similar to a drill in November which led to a North Korean attack in which several people were killed.

South Korean officials have previously said the drill, which will last about 24 hours, would be held between Saturday and Tuesday and will reportedly involve live-fire, different from the most recent drills.

"The puppet warmongers of south Korea are set to fire again shells into the territorial waters of the DPRK north of the maritime guard line of the Korean People's Army from December 18 to 21 by mobilizing lots of striking equipment newly introduced into the island, blatantly challenging the unanimous aspiration and demand of the people at home and abroad desirous of peace and security on the Korean Peninsula," a statement issued by the North Korean state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said.

South Korea, which has support from the United States and other countries, has repeatedly said it will not and has not fired shells into North Korea during drills. The North disagrees, however, and sees any drill as a military provocation.

On November 23, South Korea carried out a similar drill involving live-fire near the South Korean island of Yeonpyeong. North Korea alleged that the shells were being fired into its territory and returned fire in response, killing four people and injuring 16 others on the island.

"The waters off Yonphyong Island, the target of their shelling, are the inviolable territorial waters of the DPRK," KCNA said in its statement, saying the South has not learned from the previous 'provocative' shelling incident.

"It is the ulterior intention of the newly installed puppet military to save the face of the south Korean military which met a disgraceful fiasco by perpetrating the second adventurous shelling from Yonphyong Island," KCNA said, referring to recent changes within the South Korean military. "Through this the group of traitors craftily seeks to save its hardline policy towards the north, a policy against the nation, peace and reunification, from total failure and preserve the illegal "northern limit line."

North Korea, through state media, further warned South Korea to stop the planned drill, which it deems to be a serious provocation. "In case they conduct the above-said shelling at last despite the warning served by the KPA in advance, it will deal the second and third unpredictable self-defensive blow at them to protect the inviolable territorial waters of the DPRK as it had declared before the world," the statement said.

North Korea promised the attack would be deadlier than the strike on November 23. "The south Korean group of traitors and the puppet military warmongers had better cogitate about the KPA's warning," it concluded.

Tensions between South Korea and North Korea, which are officially still at war although an armistice agreement has been signed, are at its highest level in years and have escalated quickly in wake of two recent North Korean attacks.

On march 26, a torpedo allegedly fired from a North Korean submarine struck the South Korean warship the Cheonan, killing 46 people. The second incident took place on November 23, which resulted in four South Korean fatalities. The South also fired back at the North, killing an unknown number of people.

-- © BNO News All rights reserved 2010-12-18

These guys need to be reined in very quickly by China before the whole thing spins out of control.If they do not have the influence that the world thinks they have with NK then they should say so.

It won't be just the Korean Peninsula that goes up in flames, this is very scary!

I agree, it is time for regime change and China should be the ones to do it with South Korean and USA support from the south.

I doubt it will happen though.

I saw on the RT news that north Korea don't take any notice of China.

The lift of the squeeze on sanctions would maybe slow things.

Sadly I feel that they want a war.