N. Korea condemns US-S. Korean military drills as ‘prelude to a nuclear war’

U.S. and South Korean forces have kicked off their 11-day Ulchi Freedom Shield exercise, a massive military drill designed to boost their defense capabilities against North Korea’s ever-growing nuclear threat. The drills, which feature around 19,000 South Korean troops and a series of land, air and sea exercises, are meant to prepare both nations for threats like weapons of mass destruction, cyberattacks and GPS jamming.

The timing couldn’t be more critical, with tensions on the Korean Peninsula hitting new heights. North Korea wasted no time condemning the exercises, calling them a “beheading operation” and a “prelude to nuclear war.”

Pyongyang’s state-run media accused the U.S. and South Korea of pushing aggressive military actions, while the North’s Foreign Ministry justified its nuclear ambitions as necessary to maintain peace and prevent war by building up its own deterrent.

Download the SAN app today to stay up-to-date with Unbiased. Straight Facts™.

Point phone camera here

The U.S. and South Korea have stressed that these drills are strictly defensive, but there are lingering concerns about how North Korea might respond. In 2023, just before the end of a similar set of exercises, North Korea fired two short-range ballistic missiles, claiming they were in retaliation for allied air force drills.

Now, there’s a real chance that North Korea could launch another belligerent response. In early August, Kim Jong Un presided over a massive ceremony in Pyongyang, celebrating the deployment of 250 nuclear-capable missile launchers to the country’s frontline military units.

Kim has made it clear that he is ready to expand North Korea’s nuclear program and has even hinted at the possibility of preemptive strikes if his leadership feels threatened.

North Korea has also ramped up its psychological warfare, sending balloons filled with trash across the border into South Korea. These stunts are deepening tensions between the two Koreas.

These drills coincide with the one-year anniversary of the Camp David Summit, where U.S. President Joe Biden, South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida committed to strengthening regional security in response to North Korean threats. The U.S. has since stepped up its strategic presence in the region, deploying bombers, submarines and aircraft carriers in a show of force.