North Korea calls South Korea's F-35 jet purchases 'extremely dangerous action'

Reuters - South Korea's acquisition of American F-35 stealth fighter jets will force North Korea to develop and test "special armaments" to destroy the new weapons, North Korea's state media said on Thursday (July 11), citing a government researcher. "The delivery of 'F-35A', which is also called an 'invisible lethal weapon', is aimed at securing military supremacy over the neighboring countries in the region," an unnamed policy research director at the Institute for American Studies of North Korea's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement carried by state news agency KCNA. South Korea took delivery of its first two F-35 jets in March, with more slated to arrive this year. It has agreed to buy a total of 40 of the advanced aircraft, the last to be delivered by 2021. North Korea's latest criticism of South Korea's military acquisition as an "extremely dangerous action" comes as inter-Korean relations have stalled.