North Korea defends missile tests
Iran Press TV
Wed Mar 5, 2014 9:17AM GMT
North Korea has defended its recent missile and rocket tests, describing them as "ordinary military practice," local media say.
A spokesman for the Korean People's Army (KPA) said in a statement on Wednesday that the missiles and rockets tests followed the planned trajectories "without the slightest error," official KCNA news agency reported.
On Monday, South Korea's Defense Ministry said that the North has fired missiles with a range capability of 500 kilometers into the Sea of Japan.
This is while North Korea had also test-fired four short-range missiles last week.
Seoul described the tests a "reckless provocation" while the US has called on North Korea to stop the tests as they risked sparking tensions in the region.
The KPA spokesman noted that the tests did not have the "slightest impact" on regional peace and stability, slamming the US and South Korea's criticism.
'The US and its followers that harbor hostility towards our republic... are viciously attacking us from the very moment our rockets soared towards the sky,' he said.
The spokeman went on to say that the "real provocations" were the joint military exercises of South Korea and the US that began on February 24.
The joint drills, dubbed Key Resolve and Foal Eagle, involve nearly 13,000 American forces and some 200,000 South Korean troops.
Pyongyang has long denounced these maneuvers as a provocative "rehearsal for invasion," calling for them to be called off to avoid military tensions between South and North Korea and improve bilateral relations.
South Korea and the United States have repeatedly said that the military exercise is "defensive" in nature.
Last year's drills fuelled tensions, with Pyongyang threatening a pre-emptive nuclear strike and US stealth bombers flying over the peninsula.
SAB/PR
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