Pyongyang, November 4 (KCNA) -- A spokesman for the Foreign Ministry of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) issued the following statement on Friday:

The DPRK has already clearly warned that if the U.S. does not wish to see a grave situation hurting its own security interests to happen, it should stop at once the provocative combined air drill Vigilant Storm.

This is a manifestation of the DPRK's peace-loving efforts and patience to prevent a dangerous conflict that can be entailed by the offensive war drills targeting the belligerent side under the current unstable military armistice system and to create a stable security environment on the Korean peninsula and the region at any cost.

Over such serious developments, countries in the region, too, have repeatedly called upon those parties responsible for the present unstable situation of the Korean peninsula to take a step for detente through sincere practical actions, correctly diagnosing its reason and source.

However, the U.S. ignored the demands of the DPRK and regional countries and the self-evident principle of maintaining a peaceful stable environment and instead responded by staging combined air drills for aggression under the pretext of deterring and coping with any provocation. And it decided to extend the training period, originally scheduled until Nov. 4, over the DPRK's legitimate self-defensive countermeasure, and went the length of calling a UNSC meeting, another provocative action.

The U.S. military confrontation hysteria, that reached the extremes, is badly affecting even the whole security circumstances in Northeast Asia beyond the scale of the Korean Peninsula.

The DPRK Foreign Ministry scathingly denounces the irresponsible and reckless acts of the U.S. as a grave encroachment upon the security of a sovereign state and a shameless challenge to the international community's desire for peace and stability in the Korean peninsula and the region.

The military exercises of the DPRK armed forces after the U.S. started the combined air drill, Vigilant Storm, in collusion with its vassal forces are due reaction and action warning to the hostile provocations.

The prevailing grave military confrontation situation was evidently caused by the U.S. and south Korea staging the largest-ever joint air strike drill while clamoring about "overwhelming counteraction" against the DPRK.

The reckless confrontation option of the U.S. and south Korea cannot be construed otherwise than a very dangerous scheme to keep on making the serious unstable atmosphere prevail in the Korean peninsula and the region by maintaining the source that caused the hostile tensions.

The entire responsibility for the present situation on the Korean peninsula rests on the U.S. trying to force the DPRK to unilaterally disarm itself through sanctions, pressure and military threat by mobilizing its allies in the region.

The U.S. revealed before the world that its stereotyped stand of "dialogue without any preconditions" and "settling issues through diplomacy" is nothing but a smoke screen to deceive the international community and its aim is only to escalate the sustained tension and instability on the Korean peninsula.

The sustained provocation is bound to be followed by sustained counteraction.

The DPRK once again clarifies that it will never tolerate any attempt of the hostile forces to infringe upon its sovereignty and security interests but respond to it with the toughest counteraction to the last.

No matter how the situation may develop and what kind of unimaginable situation may arise, the DPRK will never flinch from the just road for defending the dignity and sovereignty of the state and the security of the people.

The U.S. should not act rashly. -0-

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