The North Korean Defense Minister warns of the "Freedom Edge" exercises and promises strong countermeasures

North Korean Defense Minister Kim Song-gi said, in a statement published by the North's Korean Central News Agency, that the exercises represent a security threat that would increase tension and instability on the Korean Peninsula and the region.

He added that his country would take "strong countermeasures" if the United States and its allies carried out what he described as a new military provocation.

Kim also criticized the Orient Shield exercises in which the United States, Japan, and Australia participate, as well as plans to deploy the US Army's Multi-Domain Task Force in South Korea during the current year. He considered that the growing tripartite military cooperation between Washington, Seoul, and Tokyo is taking an offensive nature and includes nuclear elements, according to the statement.

The statement represents Kim Sung-gi's first public stance since his appointment as Defense Minister on August 29, succeeding No Kwang-chul. These statements coincide with the launch of the multi-disciplinary Freedom Edge exercise, which brings together American, Japanese, and South Korean forces within a joint training program.