N. Korea denounces S Korea-US joint military drills, vows to bolster nuclear deterrent

The Korea Herald · Yonhap · 2026-11-02 00:29 UTC

North Korea on Monday denounced a recent South Korea-US combined military exercise that integrates South Korea's conventional military capabilities with US

North Korea on Monday denounced a recent South Korea-US combined military exercise that integrates South Korea's conventional military capabilities with US nuclear capabilities, saying strengthening the North's nuclear capabilities is "immutable" against such a backdrop.

In a statement carried by the North's official Korean Central News Agency, Kim Jong-sik, first vice department director of the Workers' Party of Korea's Central Committee, claimed the drill, named Iron Mace, was "the most hideous nuclear war rehearsal aimed at using nuclear weapons against the DPRK."

DPRK stands for the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, the North's official name.

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