US refusal to halt war games with ROK 'unacceptable': DPRK

UNITED NATIONS - The US rejection of a proposal by the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) that the annual joint US-South Korean military exercises be suspended is "absolutely unacceptable," a senior Pyongyang representative at the United Nations said Tuesday.

"Now is the time to stop this antagonism," Ambassador An Myong Hun, the newly appointed deputy permanent representative of the DPRK, said during his first press conference at UN Headquarters in New York at the beginning of the year marking the 70th anniversary of the liberation of the Korean Peninsula.

He appeared to have hope for US acceptance when he said "many things are possible".

"The large-scale war exercises which are undertaken every year in South Korea jointly by the United States and South Korea must stop immediately because (they) are the root cause of the escalating tensions on the Korean Peninsula and the danger of nuclear war facing the Korean nation," he said. "There can be no real or trustful dialogue nor improved inter-Korean dialogue in such a gruesome atmosphere."

"Since the division of the nation, the United states has interfered in the internal affairs of the Korean nation," An said. "They intervened in the dialogue and cooperation of the north and south of Korea. It is the hostile policy of the United States which has hindered progress in the relations between the north and south of Korea in every year they (US and South Korea) undertook dangerous military exercises against the DPRK."

The ambassador said that "in order to remove the danger of war and ease the tension and create a peaceful atmosphere," Pyongyang made a New Year proposal for a temporary suspension of the annual military exercises.

The DPRK said Saturday it is ready to "temporarily suspend" nuclear test if the United States agrees to temporarily halt joint military exercises with South Korea this year.

However, he said, the US responded by saying such war games are a separate issue from the nuclear test issue, subject of the suspended six-nation talks, involving China, the DPRK and South Korea, Japan, Russia and the United States and aimed at ending Pyongyang's nuclear tests.

"In other words, they won't accept our proposal," the DPRK ambassador said of Washington. "Refusing to accept the proposal of the government of the DPRK, the United States has shown once again that they will continue to increase military capabilities in South Korea while requesting us to not to have our own national defense capabilities."

"This is absolutely unacceptable and cannot be justified by anything," An said. "Now is the time in which the United States stop pursuing this anachronistic policy hostile to the DPRK -- an act of aggression -- and should be bold enough to choose a different approach, to change its course, that is to change its policy hostile to the DPRK."

The ambassador said the DPRK is ready to explain its intention behind its proposal directly to the United States, if the US wants "additional explanations about our proposal."

"If this proposal is put into practice this year, many things will be possible on the Korean Peninsula, such as very meaningful implications and that's why we have put forward this proposal to the US government," he said, without further elaboration.

Each year, South Korea and the United States conduct a number of joint military drills including "Foal Eagle" and "Ulchi Freedom Guardian".