North Korea denies artillery firing and mocks South Korea's detection capabilities
Seoul (AP): The influential sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un mocked South Korea's ability to detect weapons launches by the North on Sunday, as she denied Seoul's claim that North Korea fired artillery shells into the sea the previous day.
South Korea's military quickly dismissed her statement as "a low-level psychological warfare" and warned that it will make a stern response to any provocations by North Korea.
South Korea's military earlier said North Korea fired shells near the rivals' disputed western sea boundary for a second consecutive day on Saturday. The military said North Korea fired more than 60 rounds on Saturday, a day after launching more than 200 shells.
North Korea acknowledged it performed artillery firings on Friday but said it didn't fire a single round on Saturday.
Kim's sister, Kim Yo Jong, said Sunday that North Korea only detonated blasting powder simulating the sound of its coastal artillery at the seashore to test the South Korean military's detection capabilities.
"The result was clear as we expected. They misjudged the blasting sound as the sound of gunfire and conjectured it as a provocation. And they even made a false and impudent statement that the shells dropped north" of the sea boundary, Kim Yo Jong said in a statement carried by state media.
"I cannot but say that (South Korean) people are very pitiful as they entrust security to such blind persons and offer huge taxes to them," she said. "It is better 10 times to entrust security to a dog with a developed sense of hearing and smell."
Calling South Korea's military "gangsters" and "clowns in military uniforms," Km Yo Jong suggested its possible future miscalculation of North Korean moves could cause an accidental clash between the rivals, jeopardising the safety of Seoul, a city of 10 million people which is only an hour's drive from the land border.
South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff responded in a statement that it closely monitors North Korean military activities. It said North Korea must stop acts that escalate tensions, saying it will "overwhelmingly" react if North Korea launches provocations.
South Korea carried out artillery firings on Friday in response to the North's earlier firing drills. South Korea didn't perform live-firing exercises on Saturday.
Animosities between the two Koreas are running high because North Korea has conducted a barrage of missile tests since 2022 while South Korea has expanded its military training with the United States in a tit-for-tat cycle.
During their respective artillery firings on Friday, both Koreas fired shells at a maritime buffer zone they had established under a 2018 military agreement meant to ease front-line military tensions.
The agreement was meant to halt live-fire exercises and aerial surveillance along their tense border, but the deal is now in danger of collapsing because the two Koreas have taken measures in breach of the accord.
Experts say Kim Jong Un is likely to ramp up weapons tests ahead of South Korea's parliamentary elections in April and the US presidential elections in November. They say Kim Jong Un likely thinks a bolstered weapons arsenal would allow him to wrest greater US concessions when diplomacy resumes.
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India progressing under PM Modi, Karnataka heading towards decline: Union Minister Kumaraswamy
Bengaluru (PTI): Union Minister H D Kumaraswamy has said while India is moving steadily towards becoming the world’s third-largest economic power under Prime Minister Narendra Modi's leadership, Karnataka is heading in the opposite direction under the Congress government.
Speaking at a programme to mark the 101st birth anniversary of former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, along with the Atal Award presentation and Good Governance Day celebrations, the JD(S) leader said Karnataka was once a model state for governance and development.
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“Karnataka was once synonymous with exemplary governance. It had adopted an outstanding development model and emerged as a leader for the entire nation. But under the Congress government’s administration, all these distinctions have been lost, and the State is now moving in the opposite direction,” Kumaraswamy said.
He alleged that the current dispensation has completely damaged the education sector, noting that Karnataka was once a frontrunner in education.
“Karnataka, which once ranked first in good governance, has reached such a state today. Frivolous politics is being played in a good State. Administration across all departments; including health, education, agriculture and revenue has deteriorated. People must now seriously introspect,” he said.
Asserting that the era of good governance must return, Kumaraswamy said people are fed up with the misgovernance of this government.
Bengaluru, once the IT-BT capital and a hub of education and technology, has seen its infrastructure completely deteriorate, he said.
"The state government lacks the mindset to accept even well-intentioned and expert advice. It has developed a culture of speaking irresponsibly even about Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah.”
Noting that the state has all the potential and capacity to move forward, the union minister said, “At a time when India is stepping forward to become the world’s third-largest economic power under Modi government, one wonders in which direction Karnataka is heading? It is moving backwards and sliding into decline.”
Remembering Vajpayee as “Ajatashatru”, a leader without enemies who rendered long and distinguished service to the nation, Kumaraswamy said leaders like Vajpayee are rare today.
“His contributions as External Affairs Minister, Leader of the Opposition and Prime Minister were immense. He was a visionary leader who took the BJP from just two seats to 170 seats in Parliament,” he added.
Expressing concern over growing unrest, he said, “Karnataka must once again become a garden of peace for all communities. There is unrest in society. When one looks at what is happening within families, it causes anxiety. While technology is advancing and economic strength is increasing, there is fear even in turning on the television in the morning. There is no peace of mind for anyone. It is for this reason that I have advocated teaching the Bhagavad Gita at the school level. Unfortunately, politics is being unnecessarily mixed into this issue."
