N. Korea says pre-emptive nuke attack is not U.S. monopoly

By 임정요

Published : Aug. 11, 2016 - 10:39

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North Korea on Thursday railed against the U.S. deployment of three B-2 Spirit nuclear-capable bombers to the Pacific island of Guam, saying "a pre-emptive nuclear attack is not a monopoly of the United States."

On Tuesday, the U.S. Strategic Command announced Washington has temporarily deployed the bombers to Andersen Air Force Base on Guam from Whiteman Air Force Base in the U.S. state of Missouri.

"What should not be overlooked is that the massive forward-deployment of nuclear war hardware is under way with the approach of the Ulji Freedom Guardian," the state-run Korean Central News Agency said. The Ulchi-Freedom Guardian is South Korea's annual joint military training with the U.S. that will start on Aug. 22.

Photo dated March 28, 2013, shows a B-2 Spirit stealth bomber flying over South Korea's western port city of Pyeongtaek, as it takes part in a drill to strike a mock target. (Yonhap)

The U.S. "have already examined at the phase of an actual war the capabilities of nuclear strategic bombers for mounting the pre-emptive nuclear attack" on the North, the news agency said. It also claimed the U.S. is mulling a surprise nuclear attack in the course of the joint military drill.

In response to the U.S. moves, the North's military will "take merciless retaliatory counteraction" against them, it said.

In March 2013, the U.S. Strategic Command sent two B-2 stealth bombers to carry out its first bombing drill over the Korean Peninsula to send a warning to North Korea, which had threatened a pre-emptive nuclear attack on the U.S. and South Korea. (Yonhap)

N. Korea says pre-emptive nuke attack is not U.S. monopoly

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