Kim’s sister slams Seoul for monitoring congress parade

Seoul, Jan 13 (efe-epa).- The North Korean leader’s sister, Kim Yo-jong, has lashed out at the South Korean government for monitoring Pyongyang’s military movements during its single party congress, the state news agency KCNA reported Wednesday.

“They are the idiot and top the world’s list in misbehavior as they are only keen on things provoking world laughter,” Kim Yo-jong said in a statement about the South’s military officials, who she accused of displaying a “hostile” attitude for tracking movements in the North’s capital in recent days to verify the celebration of a military parade on the occasion of the Workers’ Party congress.

KCNA also reported that the congress concluded Tuesday with leader Kim Jong-un insisting on “strengthening our nuclear war deterrent” and “military capabilities” after he had warned the United States that his regime will begin to test new weapons tests if the dialog on denuclearization remains stalled.

Since December, satellite photos have shown troop rehearsals in Pyongyang for a military parade (an event in which the regime sometimes displays new weapons), suggesting that the party’s meeting would conclude with one, as the last congress in 2016 did.

South Korean military intelligence reported that heavy movement of vehicles and troops was captured in the North Korean capital on Sunday, although it is not yet clear whether it was a final rehearsal or the parade itself.

Kim Yo-jong said a parade was being held, but said that it was not directed internationally.

“We are only holding a military parade in the capital city, not military exercises targeting anybody nor launch of anything. Why do they take trouble craning their neck to follow what’s happening in the north?” Kim said in the statement, referring to the South.

“The southerners are a truly weird group hard to understand.”

Taking into account that the text cited her as vice department director of the party’s Central Committee, instead of first deputy director – the position she has held until now, it is believed that Kim, whom the congress has also removed from the list of alternate members of the political bureau, could have been demoted in some way within the regime.

However, the statement shows she will continue to act as spokesperson on inter-Korean relations, for which she did not predict a good future, saying at the end of her statement: “As I warned before, all these things must surely be reckoned up in the future.” EFE-EPA

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