North Korea on Friday condemned the upcoming large-scale South Korea-U.S. joint military exercise, warning of “a new level of a deterrent” to combat the alleged war preparation from the allies.

In a statement released by the state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), a spokesperson for North Korea’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs called the annual Ulchi Freedom Shield (UFS) exercise “a rehearsal for an aggressive war” and accused Washington of openly preparing for an actual “military confrontation” with Pyongyang.

“They are incurring the instability in the Korean Peninsula and other regional countries, which is more serious than before,” the spokesperson said,