North Korea has warned it will build a stronger level of deterrence in response to the upcoming Ulchi Freedom Shield joint military exercise by the United States and South Korea. In remarks published by state news agency KCNA on Friday, a Foreign Ministry spokesperson said such drills were raising tensions on the Korean Peninsula and pushing the world toward the brink of nuclear war.

The exercise is scheduled to take place in South Korea from August 17 to 27 and will include training to counter drone attacks, GPS disruption and cyberattacks. Joint Forces Command officials said the drills were designed around new realities of modern warfare and North Korea's changing military capabilities. About 18,000 South Korean personnel and about 28,500 US troops stationed in the country are set to participate.

Pyongyang said military cooperation among the United States, South Korea and Japan was increasingly becoming a “nuclear alliance.” North Korea recently conducted two ballistic missile tests, including a missile launch toward waters off the peninsula's east coast on Wednesday. It said it would further strengthen its nuclear deterrence in response to US military actions.