N Korea accuses South of ‘agitation’

North Korea says the South Korean president’s recent insistence on “firm security preparedness” amounts to “an agitation for extreme confrontation.”

According to AFP, Pyongyang’s denunciation came on Tuesday, a day after South Korean President Park Geun-Hye said that his country’s army should be ready for any circumstances, despite a recent easing of tensions with the North.
Park said on Monday as his country started its annual joint military drill with the United States “No matter how peaceful things are, a crisis would come if we forget about war. It is very important to ensure firm security preparedness in any circumstances.”
North Korea’s Committee for the Peaceful Reunification of Korea immediately condemned Park’s remarks, saying, “Seoul should clearly know that if they continue to pursue confrontation, inter-Korea ties will go back to the worst point, entailing uncontrollably catastrophic consequences.”
According to South Korean Defense Ministry, the annual so-called Ulchi Freedom Guardian drill, which was launched on August 19, involves more than 80,000 South Korean and US troopers.
North Korea has repeatedly condemned such exercises as ‘provocative war rehearsals’ by Seoul and Washington.
The two Koreas recently made an agreement on the resumption of operations at their jointly-operated industrial park in the Kaesong border area, which was shut down by Pyongyang after the United States and South Korea held military exercises in April.