Pentagon declines comment on N.K. statement on exercises

By Byun Duk-kun

WASHINGTON, Aug. 9 (Yonhap) -- The Pentagon declined comment Monday on a statement that the sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un issued to denounce joint military exercises between South Korea and the United States.

"We don't have a comment on the DPRK statements. In accordance with CFC Policy, we do not comment on planned or conducted training readiness," Lt. Col. Martin Meiners told Yonhap News Agency in an email, referring to North Korea by the acronym for its official name, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.

CFC refers to the Combined Forces Command between South Korea and the U.S.

Earlier, Kim Yo-jong, the sister of the North's leader, slammed South Korea and the U.S. for moving ahead with their planned joint military drill, calling it a war rehearsal and preliminary nuclear war exercise against the country.

The Pentagon spokesman reiterated that South Korea and the U.S. maintain a high-level of defense readiness.

"The ROK-U.S. Alliance remains at a high level of readiness, and continues to maintain a robust combined defense posture to protect the Republic of Korea against any threat or adversary while implementing and maintaining prudent preventive control measures to protect the force," he said, adding all training exercises will strictly adhere to South Korea's COVID-19 guidelines.

bdk@yna.co.kr
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