North Korean state media has stepped up its calls in recent days for the U.S. and South Korea to end all joint military drills, following reports that the allies will go ahead with the Key Resolve computerized simulation drills in March.
The public demands also come as a delegation of top North Korean officials led by Kim Yong Chol arrived in Washington Thursday to meet U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and possibly President Donald Trump.
An article published Friday in DPRK state outlet Uriminzokkiri mentioned the Key Resolve exercised by name, saying such “joint military exercises with foreign forces are a harmful act which impede dialogue and cooperation as well as peace and stability.”
The article is centered around a line Kim Jong Un gave in his New Year’s Address, that “the joint military exercises with foreign forces, which constitute the source of aggravating the situation on the Korean peninsula, should no longer be permitted.”
“The introduction of war equipment, including strategic assets from outside, should completely be suspended,” he added.