North Korea Threatens Military Action as South, US Plan Drills

In this photo provided by South Korean Defense Ministry, US Air Force B-1B bombers, center, F-22 fighter jets and South Korean Air Force F-35 fighter jets, bottom, fly over South Korea Peninsula during a joint air drill in South Korea, on Jan. 1, 2023. (South Korean Defense Ministry via AP, File)

North Korea threatened on Friday an "unprecedentedly persistent, strong" response as South Korea and the United States gear up for annual military exercises as part of efforts to fend off the North's growing nuclear and missile threats.

The North's foreign ministry accused the United States of stoking tension and of using the UN Security Council (UNSC) as "a tool for illegal hostile policy" to pressure Pyongyang.