A US B-52 bomber flies in formation with South Korean F-15K (top) and KF-16 (bottom) fighter jets during a joint air exercise in South Korea on March 6, 2023.
Seoul – North Korea's Foreign Ministry today accused the United States of raising tensions on the Korean Peninsula with military exercises with South Korea. It was written by the Reuters agency with reference to the North Korean news agency KCNA. In addition, Kim Yo-jong, the influential sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, threatened that shooting down one of the communist country's missiles would be a “declaration of war”.
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The exercise, in which a B-52 bomber took part on Monday, “worsened” the situation, according to Pyongyang. The DPRK also criticized the planned 10-day military maneuvers by Washington and Seoul, which will begin next week. According to the pair of allies, this is a defense exercise that is necessary in response to the growing threat from Pyongyang.
Already at the weekend, the communist country accused the United States of the collapse of the international arms control system. At the same time, she said that her own nuclear weapons are only a fair response in order to ensure peace and stability on the Korean peninsula.
Kim Yo-jong then noted today that the Pacific Ocean does not belong to the dominion of the US or Japan, and warned to keep the United States from trying to shoot down its missiles. As Reuters notes, the US or its allies have never shot down a North Korean ballistic missile.
North Korea launched an unprecedented number of missiles last year, including intercontinental ballistic missiles capable of reaching the US mainland. American and South Korean officials have repeatedly warned that this year the DPRK may also be preparing for its first test of a nuclear device since 2017.
The DPRK and South Korea are still technically at war. The Korean War from 1950 to 1953 ended with an armistice, not a peace treaty. About 28,500 US troops are now stationed in South Korea.
