North Korea warns of US-South Korean military exercises `sparking war` 0
(Dan Tri) – North Korean media warns that joint military exercises by the US and South Korea are `clear evidence` of aggression against Pyongyang.
US and Korean soldiers conduct joint exercises in 2017 (Illustration photo: Reuters).
North Korea’s Tongil Sinbo weekly criticized the annual summer military exercise of the US and South Korea called Ulchi Freedom Shield.
Tongil Sinbo warned that the upcoming exercise of the US-South Korea alliance would spark `a war of aggression`, and declared this an `unacceptable challenge`.
South Korea’s Ministry of Defense said the joint exercise with the US will be carried out in three phases, of which the first phase focuses on initial response and joint crisis management in the face of North Korea’s provocations.
North Korea views US-led military exercises in the region, especially those with South Korea, as an exercise against Pyongyang.
North Korea accused the US of exaggerating rumors about threats `to create an excuse to achieve military superiority over the Asia-Pacific region, including the Korean peninsula`.
Last week, at an event commemorating the 69th anniversary of the end of the Korean War, leader Kim Jong-un announced that Pyongyang is ready to mobilize its nuclear deterrent if a military clash occurs with its opponents.
Mr. Kim Jong-un said that the scenario of conflict with the US causes nuclear threats.
Kim Jong-un also accused the US and South Korea of continuing `dangerous, illegal hostile actions` against North Korea some 70 years after the war.
Kim Jong-un’s statement was made in the context that both the US and South Korea suspected that North Korea had finished preparing to conduct its first nuclear test since 2017.
North Korea this year has tested missiles with unprecedented frequency, especially testing hypersonic weapons – weapons capable of flying at least five times faster than the speed of sound and can challenge
During a recent meeting with two allies in East Asia, US President Joe Biden said he was `deeply concerned` about North Korea’s continued ballistic missile tests and signs of an impending nuclear test.
