North Korea has condemned the latest joint US-South Korean military drills as a provocative act, warning that they could lead to war due to an “accidental single shot.”
Pyongyang’s foreign ministry issued the warning on Monday, just as the large-scale Freedom Shield 2025 exercise began. The drills, set to run until March 21, involve live, virtual, and field-based training, according to a US statement.
The warning comes days after South Korea’s Air Force mistakenly dropped eight bombs on a village during a joint exercise with the US on March 6, injuring 15 people, including civilians and military personnel.
Relations between North and South Korea have reached one of their lowest points in years, with Pyongyang ramping up ballistic missile launches in violation of UN sanctions.
North Korea frequently condemns military cooperation between Seoul and Washington, viewing it as preparation for an invasion. The Freedom Shield drills are one of the allies’ largest annual exercises, with the US maintaining a military presence of tens of thousands of troops in South Korea.
Last week, Pyongyang also denounced the visit of a US Navy aircraft carrier to the South Korean port of Busan, calling it a “political and military provocation.”
The two Koreas remain technically at war, as their 1950-1953 conflict ended in an armistice rather than a peace treaty.
