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A top North Korean official has condemned the ongoing joint military exercises between the United States, South Korea, and Japan.

Getting into it: Kim Yo Jong, the sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and a senior official in the ruling Workers’ Party, issued a rebuke of the joint drills, describing them as a “reckless show of strength” that will “undoubtedly bring about negative consequences” for the participating nations. In her statement, released by North Korea’s state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), she warned that the military exercises, taking place “in the wrong places, namely around the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea,” would only increase instability. She accused the three countries of continuing a hostile legacy, saying, “If the present rulers have sympathized with the dangerous ‘idea’ cooked up by the former rulers and put it into practice with full consideration given to it, we will regard it as an unfiltered ‘demonstration’ of their anti-DPRK confrontational stand and ‘succession’ of confrontational policy.”

Her remarks came in response to the start of two major sets of drills: Freedom Edge and Iron Mace. Freedom Edge is a trilateral exercise involving the US, South Korea, and Japan, focused on strengthening combined capabilities in air defense, naval operations, and cyber warfare. The drills, which began on September 15, are taking place near South Korea’s Jeju Island and are designed to counter North Korea’s growing threats. This is the most advanced iteration of the exercise to date, featuring integrated missile defense systems.

Alongside Freedom Edge, the US and South Korea are conducting Iron Mace, another exercise at Camp Humphreys (the headquarters of US Forces Korea) focused on nuclear-conventional integration. Running for five days, Iron Mace simulates scenarios involving a nuclear conflict and explores ways to coordinate US strategic assets with South Korea’s conventional military capabilities. Though not publicly announced in advance, the drill was leaked to the press, which pissed off North Korea.

Echoing Kim’s threats, Pak Jong Chon, one of North Korea’s top military commanders, issued a separate statement through KCNA, branding the joint drills as a “nuclear war rehearsal.” He warned that North Korea is prepared to take “serious counteractions” if what he called “hostile forces” continue to flex their military power near North Korean territory.