DPRK says U.S.-South Korea drill hinders dialogue

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DPRK says U.S.-South Korea drill hinders dialogue

(Xinhua) 15:42, August 29, 2013

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PYONGYANG, Aug. 29 -- The Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) Thursday condemned a U.S.-South Korea drill as "war preparedness" and "confrontational policy," warning it only cast shadow to the hard-won atmosphere for dialogue.

"While the U.S. and South Korea authorities are loudly speaking about ensuring peace and security and building confidence on the Korean Peninsular, they are on the contrary choreographing dangerous war racket and confrontation moves," the official KCNA news agency quoted a spokesman of the Policy Department of the National Defense Commission (NDC) as saying.

The "Ulji Freedom Guardian" military exercise, which started on Aug. 19, flied B-52 nuclear bombers over the Korean Peninsula, openly posing a nuclear threat to the DPRK, the spokesman said in a statement.

"If the U.S. truly wants denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, it should stop the nuclear blackmail against the DPRK," said the statement, urging the South Korean president to "drop the double-dealing attitude of tolerating outsider's nuke while denying the nation's nuke."

The announcement came one day after South Korean President Park Geun-hye said the DPRK should give up its nuclear weapons. "Unless the DPRK dismantle its nuclear program, national reunification and peace would go farther away," Park said.

The NDC responded by saying that "the army and people of the DPRK will neither give up nor make even a step backward in the road for ensuring peace and security of the country and building a powerful and prosperous country."

The inter-Korean relations are slowly making progress amid defusing tensions between the two sides.

The two countries agreed to reopen a joint industrial zone in the DPRK's border town of Kaesong and to hold reunion of families separated by the 1950-53 Korean War.

However, differences remain on the date to start Mt. Kumgang tour talks.

Pyongyang expressed regret Wednesday on Seoul's calls to delay Mt. Kumgang tour talks. The DPRK requests South Korea reconsider its actions.

Seoul proposed to hold the talks on Oct. 2, a week later than Pyongyang's offer. It insists the date reflects the need for all sides to concentrate on arranging the family reunions and on normalizing the Kaesong complex.

（Editor：LiangJun、Yao Chun）