Military drills aggravate N Korea

SEOUL/WASHINGTON: Two American strategic bombers conducted drills over South Korea, the US Air Force said, raising tensions with North Korea days before President Donald Trump visits the region seeking to shut down Pyongyang’s nuclear programme.

News of the Thursday’s drills was first reported by North Korean state news agency KCNA on Friday, which said the exercises involving South Korean and Japanese fighter jets were a “surprise nuclear strike drill”.

“The reality clearly shows that the gangster-like US imperialists are the very one who is aggravating the situation of the Korean peninsula and seeking to ignite a nuclear war,” KCNA said.

While North Korea has not launched any missiles since September 15, a flurry of activity has been detected at its missile research facilities in Pyongyang.

Ahead of Trump’s visit to Asia, the drills marked the latest show of force by the United States and its allies.

The planes flew over the Pilsung Range training area in central South Korea, an Air Force spokeswoman said.

Japanese and South Korean fighter jets carried out sequenced missions with the US bombers but no ordnance was dropped.

The drill was staged at a time when three US aircraft carrier groups are in the Asia-Pacific, the first time such a potent projection of force has been together in the region in a decade.