Cooperation by U.S. and allies a step toward ‘Asian NATO,’ N.Korea media says
By Josh Smith
SEOUL (Reuters) -Joint drills by the USA, South Korea and Japan have a “sinister purpose” towards North Korea and are a part of a harmful prelude to the creation of an “Asian model of NATO”, North Korean state information company KCNA mentioned on Wednesday.
The stories on KCNA got here hours earlier than leaders of South Korea and Japan are because of attend NATO’s annual summit as observers for the primary time. They can even meet with U.S. President Joe Biden to debate North Korea, the primary such trilateral summit since 2017.
The three international locations can even conduct a mixed missile detection and monitoring train close to Hawaii in August, referred to as Pacific Dragon.
“The U.S. is getting hell-bent on the army cooperation with its stooges in disregard of the first safety demand and concern by Asia-pacific international locations,” KCNA mentioned.
In an identical assertion over the weekend, the North’s overseas ministry mentioned the drills confirmed the hypocrisy of U.S. provides of diplomatic engagement and dialogue with out preconditions.
North Korea has carried out a report variety of missile checks this yr, together with of its largest intercontinental ballistic missile, and there are considerations it may very well be making ready to check a nuclear weapon for the primary time since 2017.
South Korea and Japan are each U.S. allies, however their relationship with one another has been strained by historic tensions over Japan’s occupation of Korea from 1910-1945.
Washington has pushed Seoul and Tokyo to cooperate extra within the face of threats from North Korea, in addition to to counter the rising affect of China.
“The scheme for formation of the U.S.-Japan-South Korea army alliance, motivated by Japan’s and South Korea’s kowtowing to the U.S., is evidently a harmful prelude to the creation of ‘Asian model of NATO’,” KCNA mentioned, accusing Washington of fomenting a brand new Chilly Struggle.
KCNA carried a separate commentary by Kim Hyo-myung, a researcher at North Korea’s Worldwide Society for Political Analysis, who mentioned NATO was accountable for the conflict in Ukraine, and that there are “ominous indicators that in the end the black waves within the North Atlantic will break the calm within the Pacific.”
“NATO is nothing greater than a servant of the conclusion of the U.S. hegemony technique and a software of native aggression,” Kim wrote.
(Reporting by Josh Smith; Enhancing by Richard Pullin)
