The Chongryon (General Association of North Korean Residents in Japan) bulletin, the Chosun Shinbo, maintained in a report released on the 6th that criticism made by the North Korean regime regarding the South Korea-U.S. joint military exercise “Key Resolve” is not aimed at the South Korean government, but is rather limited to “the belligerent element of South Korean society.”
In an article released in Pyongyang entitled “U.S.-South Chosun Joint-Military Exercise Rousing Opposition from the Chosun (North Korea) Side” declared, “The arrow of condemnation regarding the joint military exercises is not aimed at South Chosun’s government; it is turned toward the U.S. and South Chosun’s belligerent fringe element.”
In addition, the article emphasized, “The North has yet to express a formal opinion or view of the new government in South Chosun; however, what is clear is that North Korea is firm in its resolve to implement the October 4th Inter-Korean Summit Agreement.”
The report goes on to attest, “The North views this joint-military exercise as an anti-unification, criminal act that puts the brakes on the Six Party Talks process and at the same time throws cold water on the people’s desire to unify. It also puts the brakes on North-South dialogue and cooperation and will not be tolerated.”
“Our compatriots do not want South Chosun authorities to put North-South relations in retreat or to conspire to do this, for they want to walk down the road to independent unification.” The article goes on to urge, in a round-about way, for the newly launched Lee Myung Bak government not to change the North Korea policies adopted by the Kim Dae Jung and Roh Moo Hyun administrations.
North Korea’s representative for the People’s Army Panmunjom Mission and spokespersons of the DPRK’s Committee for the Peaceful Reunification of the Fatherland and Foreign Minister harshly denounced the “Key Resolve” joint-military exercise in statements made on the 2nd and 3rd of this month and in the form of a dialogue of the Chosun Central News Agency, but limited the their comments to “South Chosun’s belligerent element.” However, the Chosun Central News Agency and other press organizations criticized “South Chosun authorities.”
The Chosun Shinbo stated, “Chosun is seriously concerned about the joint military exercise on a grand scale and the South’s mindset that the ultimate goal is not defense, but the invasion of North Korea. The U.S. has a ‘New Century Military Strategy,’ involving mid- and long-range air strike tactics, in the works.”
The article maintains that in one way, “this joint-military exercise only instills and amplifies apprehensions within Chosun that the U.S. is continuing to pursue a hostile policy,” and that “tension-intensifying war exercises can only damage the Six Party Talks process without a single benefit.”
