US: "The ROK-US Joint Exercises Are Defensive, No Hostile Intent Toward North Korea"

[Asia Economy Reporter Jo Yoo-jin] On the 10th (local time), the U.S. Department of State stated that the ROK-U.S. joint military exercises are purely defensive in nature and that there is no hostile intent toward North Korea.

Ned Price, spokesperson for the Department of State, responded at a briefing that there would be "no specific reaction" to North Korea's criticism by Kim Yo-jong, Deputy Director of the Workers' Party of Korea, who called the ROK-U.S. joint exercises an invasion war rehearsal.

However, he explained the U.S.'s basic stance on the matter, saying, "I would like to reiterate that the joint exercises are purely defensive in nature," and added, "We have repeatedly pointed this out, and it is a very important point."

Price further stated, "As we have maintained for a long time, the United States does not harbor hostile intent toward North Korea," and "We remain committed to our combined defense posture and the security of South Korea under the ironclad ROK-U.S. alliance."

He emphasized again, "The Department of Defense may provide additional details about the exercises, but the important point for us is that they are purely defensive in nature."

He added, "As we have said in recent weeks, we support inter-Korean dialogue and engagement and will continue to work with our South Korean partners toward that goal."

Price's remarks appear intended to avoid provoking North Korea amid its opposition to the ROK-U.S. joint pre-exercises that began the day before.

On the 10th, when the ROK-U.S. began their pre-exercises for the second half of the year, Kim Yo-jong issued a statement condemning, saying, "The joint military exercises are the most concentrated expression of the U.S.'s hostile policy toward the DPRK aimed at crushing our country by force," and "We strongly regret the treacherous actions of the South Korean authorities."

North Korea also did not respond to the regular calls through the inter-Korean communication channel restored on the 27th of last month.

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