SK Defence Chief Warns Of 'End Of Kim Regime' If North Launches War

South Korea's Defence Minister Shin Won-sik gave a warning to an increasingly belligerent North Korea on 24 Jan, saying to troops on a visit to Cheongju air base that "If the Kim Jong-un regime opts for the worst choice of waging war, you should be at the vanguard of removing the enemy's leadership at the earliest possible time and put an end to the regime,". The comments mark some of the most hard-line from a South Korean gov't official since the recent escalation in tensions.

• North Korea's gov't has ratcheted up rhetoric on the peninsula over the course of January. On15 Jan, Kim - addressing the Supreme People's Assembly - stated that references to "peaceful reunification" among other collaborative phrases would be removed from the constitution. Instead, South Korea would be referred to as "the most hostile state."
• On 23 Jan, reports suggest that the North Koreans demolished a monument known as the "Arch of Reunification" .This was followed earlier today by the launching of several nuclear-capable cruise missiles into the Yellow Sea, the first such launch since 2023.
• Much geopolitical focus remains on the war in Ukraine, the security situation in the Middle East, and ongoing cross-Strait tensions. While North Korea's recent actions could prove to be little more than sabre-rattling, any concrete indications of an imminent military escalation would quickly draw the attention of global powers given the risk of nuclear escalation and the proximity of any conflict to China, Japan, and US forces in the Pacific.