North Korea’s foreign minister Ri Yong Ho issued a warning that his country would not hesitate to shoot down American warplanes regardless of whether they are in or outside the country’s airspace, which increased the tensions on Monday that could lead to a military confrontation between countries, The Wall Street Journal informs.
Foreign minister stated that U.S. had declared a war on North Korea and his country considered all possible options to be on the table. He mentioned the President Donald Trump’s tweet as the basis for saying the U.S. had declared war. Because of that tweet, Ri stated that North Korea has “every right to take countermeasures, including the right to shoot down U.S. strategic bombers, even if they are not yet inside the airspace border of our country.”
Ri’s comments came after days of increased rhetoric and tension between the two countries, including during last week’s gathering at the UN General Assembly, where North Korea’s crisis was very high on the agenda.
Trump told the assembly the U.S. would “totally destroy” North Korea if it had to defend itself or its allies, calling its leader “Rocket Man.” Ri called Trump “mentally deranged” and said Pyongyang was prepared to test a hydrogen bomb over the Pacific Ocean. He said a North Korean missile attack on the U.S. mainland had grown inevitable because of Trump’s words.
On Monday, UN officials and diplomats said the alarm was growing that the rhetoric could lead to an unintended war and that a tweet or a statement if misunderstood, could spark armed conflict. While urging restraint, many diplomats blame North Korea and its push for nuclear weapons in violation of UN resolutions for the standoff.
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