DPRK blasts ROK over joint drills with US, warns of retaliation

PYONGYANG - The Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) slammed the Republic of Korea (ROK) on Wednesday for pushing ahead with planned military drills with the United States and warned of "serious security crisis".

In a press statement published by the official Korean Central News Agency, Kim Yong-chol, department director of Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK), said, "as we have already clarified, we will make them realize by the minute what a dangerous choice they made and what a serious security crisis they will face because of their wrong choice."

Kim Yong-chol made the remarks one day after Kim Yo-jong, vice department director of the Central Committee of the WPK, issued a similar warning: "the choice of hope or despair is totally up to the ROK's authorities."

He stressed that the military exercises slated by ROK with the United States "would be an unfavorable prelude further beclouding the future of the inter-Korean relations".

"But the ROK's authorities have now revealed that peace and trust much touted by them whenever an opportunity presented itself were just a wordplay," said Kim Yong-chol, who is in charge of the ROK affairs in the country.

ROK "must be made to clearly understand how dearly they have to pay for answering our good faith with hostile acts after letting go the opportunity for improved inter-Korean relations," he added.

Despite strong opposition from Pyongyang, the ROK and the United States started their four-day preliminary drills on Tuesday and the joint military exercises are expected to run through next week from Aug 16 to 26.

The leaders of both the DPRK and the ROK agreed to resume the inter-Korean hotlines two weeks ago, which was cut off for more than a year. The North has since demanded that the South suspend drills to accelerate a thaw in the strained inter-Korean relations.