North criticizes Japan Ground Self-Defense Force live-fire drill as a "test of reinvasion capability"
North Korea criticized Japan's large-scale live-fire exercise by the Ground Self-Defense Force as a move to bolster preemptive strike capability. It said Japan's touted "counterstrike capability" is in essence an expansion of military power to hit an opponent first.
The party organ Rodong Sinmun on the 16th, in an article titled "A reckless game of fire aimed at strengthening preemptive strike power," referred to a recent drill by the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force and said it was "in effect a test war aimed at completing reinvasion capability."
The paper took issue with the Ground Self-Defense Force having employed long-range missiles and high-velocity glide munitions in a drill on the 7th that assumed the defense of a remote island. Rodong Sinmun said this shows Japan "has moved to a practical stage of directly bringing typical preemptive strike equipment such as long-range missiles into the exercise."
Rodong Sinmun also argued that what Japan calls counterstrike capability is "in essence a preemptive strike capability against the opponent." It added that the Ground Self-Defense Force seeking to hone counterstrike capability with live-fire during the comprehensive firepower exercise "shows that the Japanese authorities are itching because they have yet to sound the cannon of reinvasion."
The paper also noted that Japan's Ministry of Defense, in its annually published Defense White Paper, defines North Korea as an "urgent threat." It argued that shifts in Japan's security policy "clearly suggest who is the primary target of preemptive strike and the main objective of reinvasion schemes."
North Korea also criticized Japan's debate on revising its constitution, increasing defense spending, and revising the three key security documents. Rodong Sinmun said Japan is focusing on becoming a "full-fledged war state," calling it a "reckless game of fire."
North Korea's criticism of Japan has continued recently over historical issues. Korean Central News Agency earlier called it a "scheme to distort history" that the Nagasaki Atomic Bomb Museum planned to change the expression "Nanjing Massacre" in exhibit explanations to "Nanjing Incident." North Korea also raised issues ranging from forced conscription to history textbooks on the Japanese military's comfort women, criticizing Japan for seeking to justify military moves beyond denying its past wrongdoings.