Condemns Deployment Of US B-1B Strategic Bombings To South Korea, North Korea: Open Threat To Security

The US B-1B Lancer strategic bomber is escorted by South Korea's F-15 fighter jet. (Wikimedia Commons/Korean Ministry of Defense)

JAKARTA - North Korea (North Korea) has criticized the United States for deploying a B-1B strategic bomber in a recent joint military exercise with South Korea (South Korea), describing the move as an "open threat" to Pyongyang's security, state media reported KCNA on Thursday.

In a statement published in the media a spokesman for the North Korean defense ministry said the deployment of US strategic bombers in the region had become routine military practices, calling it a "reckless raid."

"The recent US military and ROK measures pose an open threat to the security of our country," the KCNA statement said, referring to the official name of South Korea, the Republic of Korea.

The B-1B aircraft were deployed in a joint military exercise between South Korea and the US which was held on Tuesday along with fighter jets, according to the Seoul defense ministry.

South Korean Defense Ministry spokesman Jeon Ha-kyu rejected North Korean criticism, saying the military activity was defensive.

The B-1B bomber has been featured in joint military exercises in recent years that North Korea has long denounced as a war game against it while Seoul describes the drill as pure defense.

It is known that the South Korean and US air forces will also start a joint exercise for two weeks known as the "Freedom Flag" on Thursday, the defense ministry said, with fifth-generation stealth fighter jets deployed to take on the role of mock enemies in training.