North Korea accuses the alliance of South Korea, the US and Japan as an Asian version of NATO By Reuters
By Hyunsu Yim and Ju-min Park
SEOUL (Reuters) – North Korea has criticized joint exercises between South Korea, Japan and the United States held this month, state media said on Sunday, saying it showed relations between the three countries had developed into “an Asian version of NATO”. .
On Thursday, the three countries began large-scale military exercises called “Freedom Edge” involving destroyers, warplanes and the US nuclear-powered aircraft carrier, Theodore Roosevelt, aimed at strengthening defenses against missiles, submarines and air attacks.
The operation was designed at a tripartite summit at Camp David last year to strengthen military cooperation amid tensions on the Korean peninsula stemming from North Korea’s weapons tests.
Pyongyang will not ignore the strengthening of the military alliance led by the US and its allies and will protect regional peace with a fierce and strong response, North Korea’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement, according to the KCNA news agency.
The department also said that Washington is continuing its efforts to connect South Korea with Japan and NATO, adding that South Korea’s efforts to bring weapons to Ukraine is one of the examples of that effort.
South Korea has said it will review the possibility of supplying weapons directly to Ukraine, with the aim of countering the recent defense pact signed between North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and Russian President Vladimir Putin.
South Korea and the United States have accused the North of supplying Russia with weapons used in the war in Ukraine. Both Russia and North Korea deny any such transactions.
On Saturday, North Korea’s ruling party held a key meeting for the second day, presided over by Kim, who spoke of “detours” hampering economic development and put the focus on the second half of the year, state media said.
North Korea has long denounced joint exercises between the United States and South Korea as rehearsals for an attack and evidence of Washington’s and Seoul’s hostile policies.
Last year, the three countries conducted joint naval missile exercises and anti-submarine warfare exercises to improve responses to North Korean threats.
