SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA — North Korea warned Monday that an upcoming Asian tour by US President Barack Obama could escalate military tensions, as South Korean media cited intelligence reports of increased activity at the North’s main nuclear test site.
Obama’s April 23-29 tour includes visits to Japan and South Korea, the two main US military allies in Asia and key partners in the effort to curb Pyongyang’s nuclear weapons program.
A North Korean foreign ministry spokesman said the “reactionary and dangerous” trip would only serve to “escalate confrontation and bring dark clouds of a nuclear arms race” over the Korean peninsula.
In a statement carried by the North’s official KCNA news agency, the spokesman said recent Asia visits by the US Secretaries of State and Defense had sought to demonize the North’s nuclear and missile programs and justify a growing US military presence in the region.
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