N. Korea says its nuclear capabilities 'not empty talk'

SEOUL, April 2 (Yonhap) -- North Korea is not making "empty talk" about its nuclear capabilities, Pyongyang's state media said Sunday, adding that the United States and South Korea are engaging in "wrong behavior of bringing themselves to a grave danger."

In a commentary, the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) strongly criticized the allies' ongoing joint military drills and their scheme to hold a massive live-fire exercise in June.

"The warmongers' desperate acts are going to the extremes," it said in the English-language commentary. It cited the 11-day Freedom Shield exercise held in March.

"Their war hysteria is running up to the climax along with the start of Ssangyong, a joint landing drill," it added.

The Ssangyong (double dragon) training began March 20, the allies' first major combined amphibious landing exercise in five years. It is set to end Monday.

The KCNA also took issue with the two sides' plan to stage their largest-ever "combined joint firepower annihilation drill" in June to mark the 70th anniversary of their alliance.

"This reminds the people and army of the DPRK of June 1950 when they had to be subject to war calamity, and further arousing their high vigilance," the KCNA said. The DPRK is the acronym for the North's official name, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.

It stressed, "The U.S. and its followers should never forget the fact that their rival state has possessed the nuclear attack capability in practice as well as the characteristics of the people and army of the DPRK which do not make empty talk."

lcd@yna.co.kr
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