A government source reported Sunday that North Korean armed forces are in state of crisis alert, with the entire army being ordered to reinforce guard posts after terrorist attacks on New York and Washington. He added that this is a possible reaction to the South Korean force’s countermeasures in the wake of the tragic events.

The source added that the North is assumed to be conducting research and analysis of the deployment of US F-15Es and other high-tech weapons on the Korean peninsula following the relocation of the aircraft carrier, USS Kitty Hawk, to update its military plans. Previously, the North collected data on military operations and new weapons of the United States at the time of Gulf War in 1991 and of the Kosovo conflict in 1999, utilizing the material to revise its own military plans, such as relocation of weapons and bases

Moreover, the government official speculated that the unilateral postponement of displaced family exchanges is a collective decision taken with regard to the military situation and internal conditions.

(Yu Yong-won, kysu@chosun.com )