SEOUL: North Korea has leveled accusations of “double standards” against United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, citing his call for Pyongyang to exercise restraint following the destruction of inter-Korean roads, while allegedly remaining silent on South Korea’s purported drone infiltration into the North.
According to Yonhap News Agency, Kim Son-gyong, North Korea’s vice foreign minister for international organizations, issued a statement after Guterres urged both sides to reduce tensions and engage in dialogue following North Korea’s destruction of roads and rail lines on its side of the border. The incident took place on Tuesday in the heavily fortified demilitarized zone between the two Koreas.
Kim expressed strong disapproval of what he described as interference in North Korea’s internal matters by the U.N. secretary-general. The statement, carried by the Korean Central News Agency, emphasized that the destruction of infrastructure within North Korean territory is a sovereign right and sho
uld not be subject to international intervention.
The North Korean official further called on Guterres to denounce what he termed as the South Korean military’s “wanton infringement” on North Korean sovereignty. Pyongyang has accused Seoul of deploying drones carrying anti-North Korean propaganda leaflets over the North’s capital earlier this month. South Korea has not confirmed nor denied these allegations.
Kim warned that the U.N. chief’s comments could embolden the United States and South Korea in what he described as attempts to provoke conflict with the North. He cautioned that Guterres could be held responsible for escalating tensions on the Korean Peninsula.
In a related development, North Korea claimed on Saturday that it had found the remains of at least one drone, which it asserts was sent from South Korea. North Korean officials described the drone as similar to those displayed during South Korea’s Armed Forces Day in Seoul earlier this month. A spokesperson for North Korea’s defense ministry is
sued a warning of an “immediate retaliatory attack” should further violations of its airspace by South Korea be verified.