The adjustment was described as a “inevitable and legitimate measure” by the state newspaper Rodong Sinmun during a period of high Korean tensions.
State media characterized the North’s Tuesday demolition of roads and railroads that connected it to South Korea as “part of the step-by-step implementation to thoroughly separate [the Koreas]”.
Given that North Korean leader Kim Jong Un rejected unification as early as December 2023, some analysts view the constitutional modification as primarily a symbolic action.
A moment Roads leading to South Korea are destroyed by North Korea.
Kim claimed that inter-Korean relations had devolved into “a relationship between two hostile countries and two belligerents at war” at the time, according to official media.
He then hinted at constitutional amendments to name the South as the “principal enemy” in January and declared unification with South Korea unattainable.
Since then, tensions have progressively increased in a series of confrontations between the Koreas, especially in the past few months.
According to Bruce Bennett, a defense expert at Rand Corporation, North Korean broadcasts have been characterized by the phrase “hostile states” for about a year.
When it was revealed at the end of 2023, it was a big step because it increased the likelihood and possibility of conflict.
