NK condemns US-South Korea drills despite Trump order to scale back
North Korea denounced military drills by the U.S. and South Korea, saying it would continue exercising its right to self-defence to counter what it called military threats from the two countries, state media KCNA reported on Wednesday. A KCNA commentary called the U.S. and South Korea "warmongers" that raise tensions on the Korean Peninsula, denouncing the 11-day Ulchi Freedom Shield exercise.…
North Korea denounced the ongoing U.S.-South Korea military drills, asserting its right to self-defense and accusing the two countries of raising tensions on the Korean Peninsula, according to state media KCNA. The 11-day Ulchi Freedom Shield exercise was specifically criticized as a display of aggression by the U.S. and South Korea.
This reaction follows President Donald Trump's order on Sunday to substantially reduce U.S. participation in the annual exercise, despite his reportedly positive relationship with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. Trump claimed on Monday that Kim had responded positively to his overtures, although he did not specify the nature of this communication.
The drills commenced as planned on Monday, but U.S. Forces Korea Commander Xavier Brunson reportedly visited South Korea's Defense Ministry on Tuesday to discuss measures to scale back the exercise. Trump's efforts to rekindle engagement with Kim have come under scrutiny, given North Korea's continued advancement of its nuclear weapons and missile programs under his leadership, despite international condemnation.
Written by urgent.news from The Korea Times's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
Also reported by 1 other outlet
- S. Korea, US shorten UFS exercise, scale back field drills koreatimes.co.kr
