North Korean state media Monday called a joint US-South Korean naval drill in the Yellow Sea a "grave provocation" and a "crime" which had brought the region to "the brink of war".
The US and South Korean navies are staging their biggest-ever joint exercise, a show of force against North Korea which last week launched an artillery strike on South Korea's Yeonpyeong island, killing four people.
The four-day manoeuvre — which Washington calls defensive in nature but says is aimed as a show of force to the hardline communist regime — is led by the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS George Washington.
Pyongyang's official KCNA news agency — carrying an editorial in the Rodong Sinmun, the official ruling Workers' Party of Korea newspaper — called the exercise "another grave military provocation against us by America and the South Korean enemies".
"It's a crime for South Korea and the United States to hold large-scale military exercises at this critical location to lead the situation to an explosive stage."
"The Yellow Sea is at the brink of war because of their military provocations," it added.
"It's a huge mistake if the US and South Korean enemies try to pressure and threaten us" with the US carrier, it added.
"If they provoke us again we will wipe out the bases for invaders and will root out the source of war."
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