North Korea’s foreign ministry spokesman said the same to a question posed by KCNA, the state news agency reported on Sunday.
“The reality clearly shows that the real purpose of the US in spreading the rumor about the ‘North Korean threat’ is to provide an excuse to achieve military supremacy over the Asia-Pacific region,” the spokesman said.
“The prevailing situation calls for a more urgent build-up of the country’s defenses to proactively address the rapidly deteriorating security environment,” the spokesman added.
US President Joe Biden, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol met on the sidelines of a NATO summit last week and agreed that the progress of North Korea’s nuclear and missile programs poses a serious threat not only to The Korean Peninsula, but also East Asia and the world.
They said they would explore additional means to strengthen “extended deterrence” against North Korea.
North Korea has been conducting missile tests at an unprecedented rate this year, and some believe it is preparing for another nuclear test.
“The deterrence capabilities of the Japan-US and US-ROK alliances must be upgraded as part of the main effort to strengthen the trilateral partnership between Japan, the US and the ROK,” Kishida said.
Relations between Japan and South Korea have long been strained by memories of Japan’s occupation of the Korean peninsula from 1910 to 1945.
Relations deteriorated to their worst in years under South Korea’s previous president, Moon Jae-in, with disputes over territory and history and the two nations canceling an intelligence-sharing pact. Yun, however, expressed a desire to mend ties, and Kishida also seemed to respond favorably.
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