Arab News Japan

TOKYO: North Korea has accused the United States, Japan, and South Korea of conspiring to use cyberspace as a weapon against Pyongyang.

“We are alarmed by the hostile attempts of the United States, Japan and South Korea to turn cyberspace into a geopolitical confrontation to threaten the security of our country and infringe on our sovereign rights,” said Kim Chung-il, Director of the Press Bureau of North Korea’s Foreign Ministry.

Kim referred to a joint statement by the three countries and a “cyber diplomacy practice meeting” that, he said, “turned an unfounded cyber threat theory into international public opinion.”

“The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea strongly condemns and repels the actions of the United States, Japan and South Korea, which are trying to make cyberspace – a common development area for mankind – into a stage for geopolitical confrontation and hostile incitement aimed at sovereign countries.”

Kim said the United States referred to a “cyber threat” from North Korea as the core agenda in a meeting of the three countries held at the Munich Security Council and the NATO Foreign Ministers’ Meeting. He added that the countries’ military exercises include a plan to form a cyber-attack policy aimed at North Korea.

“This demonstrates that the motive and purpose of the cyber trio conspiracy between the United States, Japan and South Korea is to strengthen the political and military pressure on our country and to use it as a paving stone for the creation of a tripartite military alliance,” Kim said.

“The more the United States is obsessed with anachronistic and malicious hostile acts against Korea through strengthening mutual assistance with its followers, it will only increase the insurmountable distrust and hostility between the DPRK and the United States.”