North Korea prepares to destroy northern side of road no longer in use: Seoul | world news

Lee Sung Joon, spokesman for South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff, said in a briefing that they had installed screens on the road and were working behind those screens, preparing to blow up the road. He said the destruction could be carried out by Monday.

Lee said the South Korean military believes the North may be trying to launch a space rocket, which is seen by the United Nations as a prohibited test of long-range missile technology. Lee said North Korea could make unspecified small provocations to increase pressure on Seoul.

It is unclear how much of the road North Korea will destroy.

The development comes as North Korea recently accused South Korea of ​​launching drones to drop propaganda leaflets on Pyongyang three times this month and threatened to respond with force if it happened again.

In a statement released on Sunday, the North's Defense Ministry said the army had issued an initial operation order for artillery and other military units near the border with South Korea to be fully prepared for shelling.

The spokesman said the entire South Korean territory could turn into a pile of ash after a powerful North Korean attack.

North Korea often launches bellicose rhetoric when hostilities with its rivals escalate. Experts say the likelihood of North Korea launching a large-scale, premeditated attack is highly unlikely because its military forces are equal to those of the United States and South Korea combined.

South Korea refused to confirm whether it had sent the drones, but warned that North Korea would be severely punished if the safety of its citizens was threatened.

Last week, North Korea said it would permanently block its border with South Korea and build front-line defense structures to combat hysteria over a clash between South Korean and U.S. forces.

South Korean officials said North Korea has built anti-tank barriers, planted mines and reinforced roads along the border since the beginning of this year, in a possible effort to bolster its front-line security posture and prevent its soldiers from and citizens desert. Close to South Korea.

Tensions on the Korean peninsula are at their highest level in years, with North Korea continuing provocative weapons tests and South Korea and the United States expanding their military exercises.

The destruction of roads and involvement in other provocative acts could be seen as a measure to increase pressure on South Korea and the United States ahead of next month's US presidential elections.

In January, Kim Jong Un ordered an amendment to North Korea's constitution to eliminate the goal of a peaceful unification of Korea, officially designating South Korea as the country's irreconcilable archenemy and defining the North's sovereign territorial sphere.

Kim's order shocked many North Korea watchers because it broke with his predecessor's long-cherished dream of peacefully achieving a unified Korea on the North's terms. Experts say Kim's goal will likely be to reduce South Korea's voice in the regional nuclear standoff and seek direct agreements with the United States. They say Kim likely hopes to reduce South Korea's cultural influence and strengthen his rule at home.