North Korea vowed Wednesday to bolster its nuclear deterrent, describing an exercise by U.S. and South Korean forces as preparation for a "war of aggression" against the communist state.
North Korea
vowed
Wednesday to bolster its nuclear deterrent, describing an exercise by
U.S.
and
South Korean forces as preparation for a "war of aggression" against
the communist state.
The 10-day drill, which began Tuesday, showed the
U.S.
wasn't committed to dialogue over nuclear disarmament, a foreign ministry
spokesman said in a statement published by the North's official Korean Central
News Agency.
"The prevailing situation goes to prove that the
U.S.
is
not set to realize the denuclearization of the Korean peninsula through
dialogue and negotiations," he said.
"It is self-evident that the DPRK (
North
Korea
) should put spurs to
bolstering its nuclear deterrent for self-defense both in quality and quantity
to cope with this situation.
"It is preposterous for the
U.S.
to
urge the DPRK to refrain from bolstering its nuclear deterrent, while whetting
its swords for a war of aggression behind the scene of dialogue."
Any aggressive action against the North would face "merciless
counteraction," the spokesman said.
During the Ulchi Freedom Guardian exercise
U.S.
and
South Korean troops will simulate the detection and destruction of North Korean
atomic bombs, missiles and chemical weapons, according to the Yonhap news
agency.
The two countries have described the annual exercise as defensive and routine.
However, the North last week urged
Washington
and
Seoul
to
show their willingness to work toward denuclearization by scrapping the
exercise.
Pyongyang
published an open letter in
its state media, which also called for a peacekeeping mechanism to replace the
current armistice that ended the 1950-53 war.
Diplomatic efforts have been under way to resume stalled six-party disarmament
talks involving the Koreas, Russia, China, Japan and the U.S.
Senior Pyongyang officials met their counterparts in Seoul and Washington last
month, raising hopes that the talks--last held in December 2008--could resume.
The North has repeatedly expressed a desire to return to the forum, but
Washington
has
urged it to show more sincerity and mend ties with the South first.
Διαβάστε ακόμα
Τρι, 24 Σεπτεμβρίου 2024 - 19:58
Τρι, 24 Σεπτεμβρίου 2024 - 19:54
Τετ, 18 Σεπτεμβρίου 2024 - 18:32
Τετ, 18 Σεπτεμβρίου 2024 - 18:27
Τρι, 17 Σεπτεμβρίου 2024 - 20:01