North Korean Leader Kim Jong-un Orders Increased War Preparations, Impact of US-South Korean Military Exercises?

Leader Kim Jong-un with the North Korean military (Wikimedia Commons/Hopman97)

JAKARTA - North Korean leader Kim Jong-un ordered increased war preparedness, while reviewing troop field training at a major military operations base in the country's western region on Wednesday, state news agency KCNA reported on Thursday.

The visit to the base, whose location was not disclosed, came after the start of annual joint military exercises by United States and South Korean troops on Monday in South Korea, with double the number of troops taking part compared to last year.

Leader Kim said the military must "dynamically achieve a new era of glory by intensifying war preparations in line with the needs of the existing situation," KCNA reported, as reported by Reuters, March 7.

"Our army must continue to intensify war drills aimed at rapidly improving its combat capabilities for perfect war readiness," Leader Kim told his troops.

KCNA did not say whether Leader Kim was directly referring to the drills by the US and South Korean militaries. He examined troops performing actual maneuvers under conditions simulating actual war.

Earlier, North Korea's Defense Ministry urged South Korea and the United States to halt military drills, saying they were war games and warning of the consequences.

Pyongyang reacted angrily to the allied military drills, calling them a rehearsal for nuclear war. Meanwhile, Seoul and Washington said the drills were defensive and a response to North Korean threats.

An unnamed spokesman for Pyongyang's Defense Ministry said it strongly condemned what it called "frantic and reckless" military exercises, urging them to be halted.

The drills will never be defensive but an attempt to attack North Korea, the spokesman said, pointing to the increased scale of the drills and the participation of 11 countries.

"Nuclear war can be ignited even by a spark," the spokesman said.

The United States and South Korea will have to "pay a heavy price for wrong choices," the official added, pledging to undertake "military activities to control the unstable security environment."

It is known that the joint military exercise 'Freedom Shield' which was held by Uncle Sam and Ginseng, was also attended by the United Nations Command (UNC) and will end on March 14. This was held when North Korea was trying to develop its nuclear capabilities by testing missiles and other weapons.

The drills are primarily designed to neutralize North Korea's nuclear threat, including by "identifying and striking" cruise missiles, which are indicated to carry nuclear warheads, Seoul military officials said.