North Korea’s defense ministry has urged the United States and South Korea to stop military drills while warning of the consequences if they don’t, KCNA reported on Tuesday.
US militaries and South Korean militaries started their annual spring exercises on Monday in response to North Korea’s evolving threats of nuclear missiles. Twice the number of troops joined the drills compared to 2023.
A spokesperson of Pyongyang’s defense ministry said it strongly denounces “frantic, reckless” military drills and urged the countries to stop, KCNA said.
The unnamed spokesperson claimed the exercises were not defensive but instead an attempt to invade North Korea. They referenced the increased scale of troops and the participation of 11 member countries of the United Nations Command.
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KCNA quoted the ministry saying: “A nuclear war may be ignited even with a spark”.
The official added the US and South Korea will have to “pay a dear price for their false choice”, and warned the North will conduct “military activities to strongly control the unstable security environment”.
South Korea’s defense ministry dismissed the comments, saying the military drills are defensive, fending off aggression from the North.
It said in a statement: “If North Korea makes a direct provocation using the exercises as an excuse, we will make overwhelming responses immediately, strongly and until the end.”
The exercises, Freedom Shield, are set to end March 14. It comes as North Korea works to develop its nuclear capabilities with missile weapon tests. They are designed to neutralise the nuclear threats from the North, with Seoul military officials saying the exercises identify and strike cruise missiles that could carry nuclear warheads.
It comes after North Korea conducted ‘important’ tests of underwater nuclear weapons off the nation’s east coast last month.
The test of the ‘Haeil-5-23’ system was carried out by the defense ministry’s think tank, but did not specify when it took place, KCNA reported. Haeil, which translates to tsunami, is the name the country has given to its nuclear weapons system that works underwater, made up of attack drones.
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It’s among a wide variety of weapons demonstrated over the past several years amid fears North Korea’s Kim Jong-un is expanding his arsenal.
The exercise was in response to the joint military drills by South Korea, the US and Japan in January, where three-day regular drills were carried out.
At the time, a North Korean defense ministry spokesperson also threatened “catastrophic consequences”.
Our army’s underwater nuke-based countering posture is being further rounded off and its various maritime and underwater responsive actions will continue to deter the hostile military manoeuvres …,” the spokesperson added.
“We strongly denounce the US and its followers for their reckless acts of seriously threatening the security of the DPRK (Democratic People’s Republic of Korea) from the outset of the year and sternly warn them of the catastrophic consequences to be entailed by them.”
Tensions have risen significantly after Kim Jong-un declared scrapping the country’s long-standing goal of a peaceful resolution with South Korea. He threatened to rewrite the constitution to define South Korea as the most hostile foreign state, as the relationship between the nations grows fragile.
He also made a rare visit to Russia last September and launched North Korea’s spy satellite into orbit.
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