North Korea accused South Korea’s acting administration of escalating inter-Korean military confrontation amid ongoing political turmoil in the country, while justifying its own military development as a necessary response to Seoul’s arms buildup and military cooperation with the U.S.

The state-owned Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) on Friday criticized South Korea’s recent acquisition of MH-60R Seahawk naval helicopters from the U.S. as an effort to boost attack capabilities against DPRK submarines and other vessels.

The agency also condemned the ROK military’s plansto introduce new “special operation” attack and reconnaissance drones designed to take out North Korean armored units, as