North Korea threatened on Friday (February 17) to react with " unprecedented
" force
to joint military exercises between the United States and South Korea, describing them as preparations for war.
The two allies will discuss, during these exercises, which will take place next week in the American capital, the responses to be made in the event of the use of nuclear weapons by Pyongyang.
If Washington and Seoul implement these exercises, "
they will face strong and unprecedented countermeasures (...)
", a spokesman for the North Korean Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement.
Ballistic missile launches
Seoul hopes to appease its increasingly nervous population about the North, which has redoubled its efforts in military development for a year.
Kim Jong-un also said last year that his country's nuclear power status was '
irreversible
', and has since carried out regular nuclear tests, including intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) launches despite community sanctions. international.
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The joint military exercises between the United States and South Korea are infuriating Pyongyang, which sees them as rehearsals for an invasion.
Pyongyang's reaction reflects the importance of the drills, said Yang Moo-jin, a professor at the University of North Korea Studies in Seoul.
These will make it possible to assess the extent to which the American nuclear arsenal will be involved in the deterrence vis-à-vis North Korea, he told AFP.
