State media stated on Tuesday (Feb. 7), as Pyongyang prepared to observe a military anniversary, that North Korean leader Kim Jong Un promised to increase military exercises and strengthen the nation's war preparation posture.
"Studied and discussed there were ... the issue of constantly expanding and intensifying the operation and combat drills of the KPA to cope with the prevailing situation and more strictly perfecting the preparedness for war," KCNA said.
The central military commission of the ruling Workers' Party met on Monday, presided over by Kim, where officials discussed "long-term issues concerning the orientation for army building" and "major military and political tasks" for this year.
The meeting will take place as North Korea prepares to celebrate the establishment of its armed forces with a military parade on Wednesday. North Korean soldiers were spotted practicing in formation in Pyongyang, according to commercial satellite imagery, and South Korea said it was keeping an eye on the rise in related operations.
The military gathering comes in the wake of North Korea's Thursday criticism of US and ally drills, which it claimed had crossed an "extreme red-line" and threatened to convert the peninsula into a "huge war arsenal and a more critical war zone."
The encounter took place as North Korea appeared to be getting ready for a huge military parade in its capital, Pyongyang, to mark the Korean People's Army's founding anniversary, which falls on Wednesday. Concern for the United States and its Asian allies is mounting as Kim may use the occasion to display the newest equipment from his expanding nuclear weapons and missile program.
The remarks made at the conference are Pyongyang's most recent indication that it is getting ready to step up its military displays after a record-breaking year for missile testing.
In a statement released on Thursday, the North Korean foreign ministry denounced US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin's travel to South Korea and said that Pyongyang was not interested in talks as long as Washington continued its hostile policies.
In order to confront North Korea's nuclear development and avert conflict, Austin and his South Korean counterpart announced last Tuesday that they would increase military exercises and send out additional "strategic assets," like aircraft carriers and long-range bombers.
Austin responded that the U.S. goal was to create more security and stability and that it remained committed to supporting South Korea when questioned about the tensions with North Korea during a trip to the Philippines.
