Source forbes
SEOUL — North Korea sharply condemned ongoing joint military drills between the United States and South Korea, labeling the annual exercises “frantic” and “extremely dangerous,” according to state media. The rebuke came despite recent moves by U.S. President Donald Trump to scale back the exercises and re-engage North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in diplomatic dialogue.
In a commentary published by state news agency KCNA, Pyongyang accused Washington and Seoul of escalating tensions across the Korean Peninsula. The commentary asserted that North Korea will continue exercising its “right to legitimate self-defense” to neutralize military threats posed by the allied exercises.
The statement made no direct mention of Trump or his recent directive to the Pentagon to substantially reduce the scope and duration of the Ulchi Freedom Shield drills. Earlier this week, Trump criticized the joint maneuvers as “costly” and “hostile,” stating he had instructed defense officials to scale them back while emphasizing his positive personal rapport with Kim.
Following the directive, defense officials in Washington and Seoul adjusted the schedule, scaling down joint field training and canceling portions of the simulation-based drills. South Korean defense officials confirmed that key operational phases of the maneuvers would conclude earlier than originally planned.
Despite Washington’s signals to revive direct talks, regional analysts noted that Pyongyang’s response follows its long-standing pattern of rejecting allied exercises as rehearsals for invasion. However, foreign policy observers cited by Reuters pointed out that issuing an unsigned media commentary—rather than a high-level official declaration or conducting fresh weapons tests—suggests Pyongyang may be leaving the door open for future negotiations while assessing Washington’s next diplomatic moves.
