North Korea has said its military forces are ready to take any action necessary after a US Navy fast-attack nuclear submarine docked in a port in the South Korean city of Busan, and accused the United States of posing a grave threat to its national security, reports Al Jazeera.
The country’s state-run KCNA news agency on Tuesday quoted the Ministry of Defence as saying in a statement that the presence of a US nuclear submarine on the Korean Peninsula was a “clear expression of the US invariable hysteria for confrontation”.
“We express grave concern over the US dangerous hostile military act that can lead the acute military confrontation in the region around the Korean Peninsula to an actual armed force conflict,” the statement said.
The ministry said North Korea would “unhesitatingly exercise the legitimate right to punish the provokers”, as it accused the US of being a “hegemonic entity” which “blindly believes in domination through power”.
According to South Korea’s Defence Ministry, the USS Alexandria submarine docked at a Busan port on Monday for supplies and to provide a rest for its crew.
The stop will also provide a chance for the South Korean and US navies to exchange information and formulate a combined defence posture, the ministry added.
The USS Alexandria, part of the US’s Pacific Fleet, is a fast-attack, nuclear-powered submarine armed with Tomahawk cruise missiles.
South Korea’s Armed Forces declined to comment on the North Korean government’s statement.
Bd-pratidin English/Tanvir Raihan
