North Korea designates South Korea as hostile state

North Korea has designated South Korea as ‘a hostile state’ for the first time, two days after it blew up front-line road and rail links that once connected the country with the South.

North Korea confirmed Thursday that its recently revised constitution defines South Korea as ‘a hostile state’.

The back-to-back developments indicate North Korea is intent on escalating animosities against South Korea, increasing the danger of possible clashes at their tense border areas, though it’s highly unlikely for the North to launch full-scale attacks in the face of more superior U.S. and South Korea forces.

The North's KCNA news agency reported that the military had blasted sections of road and rail links with South Korea on Tuesday as legitimate action taken against a hostile state as defined by its constitution.

Sixty-metre sections of the road and railway on its side of the border that had been laid as crossings were now completely blocked as part of a ‘phased complete separation of its territory’ from the South, it said.

“This is an inevitable and legitimate measure taken in keeping with the requirement of the DPRK Constitution which clearly defines the ROK as a hostile state,” KCNA said, using the North's official name, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, and South Korea's, the Republic of Korea.

Source: Agencies