North Korea Leadership Watch

Research and Analysis on the DPRK Leadership

KPA Southwestern Command Issues Statement on 5th Anniversary of YP-do

KPA service members involved in the shelling of Yo'np'yo'ng Island in November 2010 speak on DPRK state television (Photo: KCTV-Yonhap).

KPA service members involved in the shelling of Yo’np’yo’ng Island in November 2010 speak on DPRK state television (Photo: KCTV-Yonhap).

The Korean People’s Army [KPA] Southwestern Command issued a statement on November 22, 2015 “in connection with the fact that the south Korean military warmongers are running a high fever in their sinister military provocation.”  The KPA Southwestern Command statement appeared one day ahead of the fifth anniversary of the artillery shelling on Yo’np’yo’ng Island, resulting in four deaths on the ROK side.

According to KCNA, the KPA Southwestern Command said:

As well known, Yo’np’yo’ng Island shelling incident that happened on Nov. 23, 2010 was recorded as an event to be specially recorded in history of the north-south relations as it clearly proved once again how miserable the doom of those hell-bent on the confrontation with the fellow countrymen is.

However, the south Korean military is still resorting to the childish farce to mislead the public opinion and make a mockery of the world.

They are planning to conduct a provocative firing at the waters of the DPRK with the military hardware such as K-9, 155 mm self-propelled howitzer, 130 mm multiple launch rocket system, ground-to-ground guided missile “Spike”, helicopter gunship AH-1S and other lethal weapons involved in the area around Paekryo’ng Island and Yo’np’yo’ng Island on Nov. 23, far from drawing a lesson from their bitter defeat on Yonphyong Island five years ago.

Prior to this, they opened to public on Nov. 15 the news that the marine corps command is pushing ahead with a proposal for changing the official name of “Yo’np’yo’ng Island shelling provocation” into “Yo’np’yo’ng Island Shelling Battle”.
The reason they said is that if they call it the “north’s shelling provocation on Yo’np’yo’ng Island”, they can mislead the public opinion to give impression that the KPA is the “real provocateur” but it would be hard for them to evade the world criticism that they sustained unilateral heavy blows and thus unable to erase their disgraceful record of defeat. So, they are planning to rename it the “shelling battle” and give impression that there was a close battle between the KPA and them in a bid to paint their defeat as a “victory”.

The south Korean war-like military forces’ act of renaming Yo’np’yo’ng Island shelling incident is bringing another more serious misfortune to themselves.

What should not be overlooked is their remark that they would “raise the level of the honorable treatment” to the dead and the wounded of Yo’np’yo’ng Island shelling.

Lurking behind this is a sinister intention.

Their deplorable plight still suffering from persecution mania they caught in the face of strong firepower strike by the KPA is spreading war-weariness and evasion of military service among young and middle-aged south Koreans.

The south Korean military, being panic-stricken, is finding a way of putting the situation under control, and it seeks to tempt the soldiers to military service and encourage them to stand in the van of the confrontation with the compatriots in the north by “leveling up honorable treatment” to this end.

Herein lies the real purpose of the authorities’ renaming.

The servicepersons of the Southwestern Front of the KPA take peace dearer than any others.

Therefore, they don’t and will not have mercy on those who disturb peace even a little as they didn’t in the past.

If the south Korean military fires at the waters of the DPRK in the hotspot area of the West Sea of Korea on Monday, they will experience merciless retaliation of the Southwestern Front units of the DPRK on the five islands.

The bellicose forces of the south Korean military should come to their senses.

They should go by the August agreement if it is truly dear to them.

They should not dig their own graves with war drumbeats for the preemptive strike against the DPRK but draw a lesson from the bitter defeat they suffered 5 years ago.

They would be well advised to remember that the provokers are always doomed.

An affiliate of 38 North