North Korea Protests South Korea-U.S.-Japan Military Cooperation: "Cannot Tolerate Regional Security Imbalance"

Criticism of Joint Drills Such as “Freedom Edge”
Continued Commitment to Strengthening Nuclear Capabilities

North Korea has condemned the recent agreement among South Korea, the United States, and Japan to strengthen security cooperation, calling it "a root cause that destroys peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula and in the Asia-Pacific region."

Jinyoung Seung, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, took a commemorative photo on the 15th (right, local time) at the Pentagon during the ROK-U.S.-Japan Joint Chiefs of Staff meeting with Dan Caine, U.S. Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (left), and Hiroaki Uchikura, Chief of Staff of the Japan Joint Staff. Provided by the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Yonhap News Agency.

On July 18, a spokesperson for North Korea's Ministry of Defense, in a statement released through the Korean Central News Agency, described the trilateral military cooperation as "an unchanging hostile attempt to gain military superiority in the region and pursue hegemonic geopolitical interests."

The spokesperson added, "We sound the alarm over the dangers of provocative trilateral military cooperation, which creates a worrisome possibility of military confrontation and conflict in the Korean Peninsula region," warning of "the serious negative impact this will have on the regional security environment."

The spokesperson also referenced the recent "Ssangmae Training," a South Korea-U.S. joint air exercise held at Osan Air Base, as well as the multinational "2026 Rim of the Pacific Exercise (RIMPAC)" conducted in Hawaii, United States. The spokesperson said, "We absolutely cannot overlook the grave security challenges posed by the South Korea-U.S.-Japan trilateral military cooperation on the Korean Peninsula and beyond."

The statement emphasized, "With responsible resolve and effective action, we will deter the military moves of hostile nations and thoroughly manage the security environment of the Korean Peninsula region."

The spokesperson also reaffirmed North Korea's commitment to strengthening its nuclear capabilities, declaring, "We will never tolerate the imbalance of power in the region forced by the military collusion of South Korea, the United States, and Japan from a position of strong power." The statement continued, "We will faithfully fulfill our constitutional mission to neutralize real security challenges and potential threats, and to defend the nation's safety and regional peace."

Previously, Jinyoung Seung, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff of South Korea; Dan Keane, Chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff; and Hiroaki Uchikura, Chief of Staff of the Japanese Joint Staff, met in Washington, D.C., United States, on July 15 to discuss strengthening trilateral security cooperation, including the continued implementation of the multi-domain joint military exercise "Freedom Edge."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.