North Korea slams missile warning pact between South Korea, US, Japan

The North Korean media has slammed the missile pact between South Korea, the United States and Japan, saying that the three countries were “cooking up the ‘Asian-version NATO’.”

Recently, the leaders of South Korea, the United States and Japan agreed to share real-time data on the North’s missile launches. On Thursday, North Korea’s media slammed this plan, saying that the three countries were discussing “sinister measures” for tightening military cooperation.

A commentary by Kang Jin Song, an international affairs analyst, carried in North Korea’s state media KCNA (Korean Central News Agency), said that the pact was a result of American efforts. The commentary said, “This is heightening the vigilance of regional countries including the DPRK (Democratic People’s Republic of Korea) to the maximum. The U.S. and its followers will get more and more exposed to the security crisis.”

On Sunday, South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol, United States President Joe Biden and Japan’s Prime Minister Fumio Kishida agreed to expand security cooperation in various areas. During their trilateral talks on the sidelines of the Group of Seven (G7) summit in Hiroshima, Japan, they also agreed to share real-time data on Pyongyang’s missile launches. According to the White House, the three leaders also discussed their respective Indo-Pacific Strategies.

In recent months, North Korea has been launching a series of missile and weapons tests, including the intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM).

In April, the South Korean President and the United States President held a summit in Washington to talk about creating a joint nuclear consulting group: the Nuclear Consultative Group (NCG).

In November last year at a trilateral summit in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, Yoon, Biden and Kishida agreed to share North Korea’s missile warning data in real time.

The North Korean analyst warned that his country would “never tolerate” such an action. The analyst also criticised other U.S.-led military alliances.