North Korea vows 'revenge on US imperialists' on anniversary of 1950 war

North Korea has condemned “aggression moves” by Washington and Seoul, pledging to take revenge as it marked the 72nd anniversary of the outbreak of the Korean War.

A number of workers' organizations held meetings to “vow revenge on the US imperialists,” blaming the US for starting the 1950-1953 Korean War, Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported. 

Pyongyang denounced Washington over what it described as “aggression moves” conducted with South Korea and Japan, saying the US push to deploy “strategic assets” on the South aimed to provoke another war.

“Such insolent behavior of the US fans the anger and revenge of the Korean people,” KCNA reported.

Tensions are simmering on the Koran Peninsula following joint naval exercises off Okinawa, with the participation of a US aircraft carrier and South Korean destroyers. The US and Japan conducted a separate drill, flying warplanes above waters in the Korean Peninsula.

Earlier this month, China and Russia said the United States is fueling tensions after they vetoed a US-led push for tougher sanctions on North Korea at the United Nations. 

Tension on the Korean Peninsula has “developed to what it is today, primarily due to the flip flop of US policies,” said China’s UN Ambassador Zhang Jun.

The situation has further been aggravated by harsh rhetoric expressed by new South Korean president Yoon Suk-yeol who is following a confrontational approach toward the North. 

On Saturday, Yoon said Seoul and Washington will retain "strong security posture." 

“We will maintain strong security posture based on South Korea-US alliance and a strong military backed by science and technology,” he wrote on Facebook, marking the war anniversary in Seoul.

On Friday, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un wrapped up a key meeting with top military officials, ordering the country's defense capabilities to be strengthened after the recent muscle-flexing by the US and South Korea, marked by their first joint war games in four years. 

Kim presided over the three-day Enlarged Meeting of the 8th Central Military Commission during which top officials "approved an important issue of providing a military guarantee for further strengthening the country's war deterrent".

North Korean leader ends key meeting, orders strengthening of 'war deterrent'

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has wrapped up a key meeting with top military officials, ordering the country

The US and its allies say Pyongyang could conduct its first nuclear test in five years at "any time" now.

North Korea has tested an unprecedented number of ballistic missiles this year, including massive intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs), new hypersonic missiles, and a short-range missile potentially designed for tactical nuclear weapons.

North Korea maintains that its weapons tests are a defensive measure against threats posed by the presence of US forces near its territorial waters and the holding of joint war games with South Korea.

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