North Korea is «fully ready for both dialogue and war» and prepared to respond to any U. S. «provocation by prompt counterstrike,» state-run media said Mond
North Korea is “fully ready for both dialogue and war” and prepared to respond to any U. S. “provocation by prompt counterstrike,” state-run media said Monday as the Winter Olympics continued in South Korea.
In a pair of blistering commentaries, the North’s official Korean Central News Agency ripped into the United States over what it said were moves to stifle the emerging detente between the two Koreas, including talk of military action against the reclusive country and the resumption of annual military exercises with the South that were postponed until the Winter Games wrapped up.
Taking aim at the joint military exercises, known as Foal Eagle and Key Resolve, one commentary slammed Marc Knapper, the current charge d’affaires at the U. S. Embassy in Seoul, for his statement earlier this month that the drills would be conducted in April.
“The Trump group’s racket for resuming the war exercises is a wild act of ruthlessly trampling even a small sprout of peace that has been now seen on the Korean Peninsula,” the commentary said.
“This proves that the U. S. war shadow expected to loom after the Olympics has begun to be activated in its practical phase,” it added.
Pyongyang, which has been slapped with a series of tough U. N. and unilateral sanctions, has seen its ties with Seoul thaw amid a charm offensive that saw North Korean leader Kim Jong Un dispatch his younger sister to the games to deliver an offer to host a summit with South Korean President Moon Jae-in.
