North Korea does not think that tension has lessened in the Korean peninsula, but only escalated with the joint naval exercise by South Korea and its ally the United States involving a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier.
The 'Rodong Sinmun' daily, the mouthpiece of the ruling Workers' Party of Korea (WPK), said in an article on Tuesday that conditions remained precarious because of the naval exercise taking place in the East Sea. "The state of tension on the Korean peninsula have not lessened in the slightest," the newspaper claimed.
The Communist nation's reaction comes after it toned down recently its war rhetoric threatening South Korea and the United States with nuclear strikes following imposition of fresh round of U.N. sanctions after the North carried out its third nuclear test in February last.
"The naval maneuvers involving the Nimitz carrier battle group are contributing to tensions in the region, particularly since it comes right after Seoul and Washington conducted the Foal Eagle military drills," it said.
The two-day naval exercise off the South Korean coast would end later on Tuesday, while Foal Eagle ran for two full months and concluded on April 30.
The daily, which reflects the views of the WPK and the state policy as a whole, argued that the only reason full-scale war has not erupted in the face of military drills is because Pyongyang has confronted the U.S. nuclear threat head on.
"The DPRK (North Korea) has been able to safeguard its sovereignty and peace because it built up its nuclear deterrence in the face of efforts by the U.S. to stifle the country," it said.
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