SEOUL, July 3 (AJP) - North Korea issued a sharp rebuke on Thursday to the United States over joint military exercises with South Korea and the deployment of strategic assets in the region, calling them “provocative acts” that aggravate tensions on the Korean Peninsula.
In an editorial carried by the state-run Rodong Sinmun, Pyongyang claimed that the U.S. has “repeatedly staged acts of provocation” through combined military drills since the end of the Korean War. The paper described such moves as part of Washington’s “unchanging ambition of aggression” toward the North.
“If a country is weak, it inevitably becomes the target of invasion and humiliation,” the newspaper said, pointing to unnamed countries as examples. It also warned that “any complacency in strengthening defense capabilities” could threaten both national security and the livelihoods of citizens.
The editorial went on to reaffirm the North’s status as a nuclear-armed state, saying the country has “risen as a nuclear power” and has “fundamentally shifted the balance of power in East Asia.” It claimed that a “crack has appeared” in the global order led by imperialist forces.
In a separate article, the newspaper criticized NATO’s recent move to raise defense spending to 5% of gross domestic product (GDP) by 2035.
The statement comes amid renewed speculation over a possible meeting between former U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un. Trump recently said that any “potential conflict” between the two countries could be resolved, referring positively to his personal rapport with Kim.
Trump is reportedly considering a visit to South Korea in October during the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit, raising the possibility of an encounter with Kim at the inter-Korean border village of Panmunjom.
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