North Korea says soldiers are too busy to respond to ‘provocative’ US-ROK drills



News North Korea says soldiers are too busy to respond to ‘provocative’ US-ROK drills DPRK statement refers to mobilization of army for construction to lower tensions and seem more responsible, experts say Jeongmin Kim \| Lina Park March 5, 2024 SHARE COPY LINK FACEBOOK X LINKEDIN MASTODON A North Korean soldier at a construction site \| Image: KCTV (Sept. 2020) North Korea said its soldiers are too busy carrying out construction projects to respond to “provocative” U.S.-South Korea joint military drills this week, a message experts said appears aimed at highlighting the need to deescalate tensions on the peninsula. However, the same statement carried by Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) on Tuesday also warned that Washington and Seoul will pay a “dear price” for practicing invasion, condemning the large-scale Freedom Shield exercises with U.N. Command (UNC) member states. “The frantic war drills by the ROK puppets and vassal forces led by the U.S. make a clear contrast with © Korea Risk Group. All rights reserved. No part of this content may be reproduced, distributed, or used for commercial purposes without prior written permission from Korea Risk Group. Get the Daily Update & Podcast Updates Start your day with the North Korea stories that matter most – as selected by Trending

News

North Korea says soldiers are too busy to respond to ‘provocative’ US-ROK drills

DPRK statement refers to mobilization of army for construction to lower tensions and seem more responsible, experts say

Jeongmin Kim | Lina Park March 5, 2024

North Korea says soldiers are too busy to respond to ‘provocative’ US-ROK drills

A North Korean soldier at a construction site | Image: KCTV (Sept. 2020)

North Korea said its soldiers are too busy carrying out construction projects to respond to “provocative” U.S.-South Korea joint military drills this week, a message experts said appears aimed at highlighting the need to deescalate tensions on the peninsula.

However, the same statement carried by Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) on Tuesday also warned that Washington and Seoul will pay a “dear price” for practicing invasion, condemning the large-scale Freedom Shield exercises with U.N. Command (UNC) member states.

“The frantic war drills by the ROK puppets and vassal forces led by the U.S. make a clear contrast with

About the Authors

Jeongmin Kim

Jeongmin Kim is Executive Director at Korea Risk Group, based in Seoul. She covers inter-Korean relations and North and South Korean foreign and military affairs. Kim has covered the 2022 ROK presidential election on the ground, and prior to joining NK News, she worked for the CSIS Korea Chair in Washington D.C. and Reuters news agency’s Seoul bureau.

View more articles by Jeongmin Kim EMAIL Twitter Got a news tip?Let us know!

Lina Park

Lina Park is the Digital Communications and Events Manager at Korea Risk Group. She previously worked at the Business and Finance desk of The Korea Herald and as a news trainee at NK News. Her past research experience includes work on North Korean human rights at HanVoice and South Korea’s foreign relations at the Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada.

View more articles by Lina Park EMAIL Got a news tip?Let us know!