DPRK slams joint military drills by US, ROK, Japan

PYONGYANG - Senior officials of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) on Saturday condemned upcoming military drills by the United States, the Republic of Korea (ROK) and Japan, the official Korean Central News Agency reported Sunday.

Seoul will launch two simultaneous drills on Monday, including Freedom Edge, a trilateral outdoor multi-domain exercise with the United States and Japan, and Iron Mace, a tabletop drill simulating a nuclear-attack response with the United States, ROK media reported.

Kim Yo-jong, vice department director of the Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK), said the "Guidelines for Nuclear Deterrence and Nuclear Operations on the Korean Peninsula" fabricated by the United States and the ROK are a dangerous idea.

She said the DPRK will regard it as an unfiltered demonstration of their anti-DPRK confrontational stand and "succession" of confrontational policy.

The reckless show of strength made by the three countries in real action near the DPRK will inevitably bring bad results to themselves, she added.

Pak Jong-chon, vice-chairman of the Central Military Commission of the WPK, said Iron Mace is a "nuclear war rehearsal aimed at using nuclear weapons against the DPRK from A to Z", while the Freedom Edge is the most comprehensive and offensive war drill for aggression in its scale, content and nature.

The reckless military moves of the three countries pose a grave challenge to the security interests of our state and a major danger of undermining regional stability and escalating military tension, he said.

Pak stressed that if the hostile forces persist in their muscle-flexing, the DPRK will respond to them with "counteraction in a very clear and intensified way".