The DPRK's Envoy to China, Park Myung Ho, held a press conference on Tuesday at the country's embassy in Beijing. He criticized US Vice President Mike Pence's urging of Latin American countries -- Brazil, Chile, Peru and Mexico -- to cut ties with DPRK.

Park stated that the US's actions of separating the DPRK from its Latin American friends are extremely selfish and arrogant. It is not the first time that the US has been forcing countries from Asia, Africa, and Latin America to cut ties with Pyongyang. He stresses that the DPRK will continue to develop friendly relations with other countries in line with the principles of peace and independence.

When asked about his take on the current joint military drills between the US and ROK, the official says that the US should make the right choice and immediately stop its provocative acts.

He emphasizes that nobody can guarantee that the troops for the drills will not transform into real battle forces. The US is the culprit that has broken the peace on the Korean Peninsula. Pyongyang has already warned Washington to make the right choice, or there will be inevitable revenge and punishment for the US.

The press conference takes place right after the US and South Korea started their joint military exercise on Monday.

The drills are a computerized simulation. About 17,500 US service members are taking part, down from 25,000 last year.

On Monday, the DPRK’s central news agency said the US would face “merciless revenge” for ignoring Pyongyang’s warnings over annual military drills with ROK.

The press conference is a part of the pattern of belligerent language used by Washington and Pyongyang in their ongoing tensions. Diplomatic efforts seem to have hit a roadblock, but the two sides have so far prevented another devastating conflict more than six decades after the Korean War.