North Korea warned on Friday that joint military exercises between South Korea and the United States are pushing the region close to armed conflict.
An article published in state-owned North Korean media says the peninsula is “on the brink of explosion,” and that the joint military exercises have become “more undisguised and dangerous [in] nature.”
The outlet also said that “[an] exercise for ‘annihilating’ a nuclear power is just sheer bulls**t.”
South Korea and the United States are set to begin their largest military exercise ever, taking place in five phases from May 25 to June 15. It will involve forces in the air, sea and land and will include F-35A fighter jets, AH-64-Apache Helicopters, various tanks and multiple rocket launchers.
It will also mark the 70th anniversary of the alliance between South Korea and the United States, and the 75th anniversary of South Korea’s military.
The North Korean article, titled “No End to the Ceaseless War Moves,” states it “is a legitimate right of a sovereign country to equip itself with more powerful self-defensive means in order to cope with the prevailing grave situation and prospective threats.”
“The frantic nuclear war moves of the United States and the south Korean puppet warmongers will invite corresponding counteraction," it goes on to warn.
In April, the White House announced the “Washington Declaration,” an agreement between South Korea and the United States on “nuclear deterrence,” which the article described as a “nuclear threat and blackmail against the DPRK [Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.]”
The United States has insisted its military drills are not meant to provoke North Korea and are instead intended to demonstrate its commitment to protect its ally from potential North Korean attacks.