According to analysts, the attitude taken by the North Korean government is a direct response to South Korea's recently-toughened attitude, which has urged de-nuclearization and sided with the U.S. government on a number of political issues. <!--[if !supportEmptyParas]--> <!--[endif]-->
<!--[if !supportEmptyParas]-->Their rocky relationship is nothing new; they have been, at least, in a state of semi-war since the Korean War ended in 1953. <!--[endif]-->
<!--[if !supportEmptyParas]-->The South Korean Defense Ministry said North Korea "was intentionally interpreting Seoul's objectives and remarks by its officials in a malicious manner." <!--[endif]-->
To an uninvolved citizen of a relatively separatist state, this news, although new to me, isn't personally provocative. While I hope that their issues are resolved peaceably (which seems unlikely), I remain, for the moment, relatively ignorant and thus uninvolved.