North Korea has condemned the recent trilateral military exercises involving the U.S. B-52H Stratofortress, labeling them as a major risk factor escalating military tensions on the Korean Peninsula and surrounding areas.
On Monday, the policy director of North Korea’s Ministry of National Defense stated in the Workers’ Party’s newspaper, Rodong Sinmun. The statement addressed the joint air drills conducted on July 11th, where the U.S., South Korea, and Japan mobilized various combat aircraft, including the B-52H, and held a meeting of the three nations’ Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS). The director claimed this clearly demonstrates their intent to accelerate trilateral military cooperation.
The statement expressed serious concerns about the hostile actions of the U.S., South Korea, and Japan, accusing them of continuing provocative and threatening military maneuvers while deliberately ignoring North Korea’s security concerns. It issued a stark warning about the potential severe consequences these actions could have on regional stability.
The director pointed out that this year, the U.S. has set new records for deploying strategic strike capabilities in the Korean Peninsula region and significantly increased the scale and frequency of joint military exercises with allied nations. He also criticized the deployment of U.S. aerial reconnaissance assets to U.S. bases in South Korea.
The statement asserted that taking responsive measures to provocative military actions, such as these clearly aggressive joint military exercises, is a legitimate exercise of North Korea’s sovereign rights.
The director warned that North Korea maintains a high level of military readiness, capable of effectively responding to acts of war, deterring collective aggression by the U.S. and its allies, and safeguarding the nation’s sovereignty and security interests. He pledged to continue taking measures to protect these interests.
The U.S., South Korea, and Japan conducted a joint air drill on July 11th in the waters south of Jeju Island, with the participation of the U.S. B-52H strategic bomber. This exercise marks the second joint air drill since the inauguration of South Korea’s Lee Jae-myung administration and the first deployment of the B-52H to the Korean Peninsula this year.