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About 800,000 students and workers, on Friday alone, across the
country expressed a desire to enlist or reenlist in the military
to counter the United States, the Rodong Sinmun newspaper
reported.
"The soaring enthusiasm of young people to join the army is a
demonstration of the unshakeable will of the younger generation
to mercilessly wipe out the war maniacs making last-ditch
efforts to eliminate our precious socialist country, and achieve
the great cause of national reunification without fail and a
clear manifestation of their ardent patriotism," the North's
Rodong Sinmun said.
The North's claim came after North Korea on Thursday launched
its Hwasong-17 intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) in
response to ongoing U.S-South Korea military drills.
North Korea fired the ICBM into the sea between the Korean
peninsula and Japan on Thursday, hours before South Korea's
president flew to Tokyo for a summit that discussed ways to
counter the nuclear-armed North.
The North's ballistic missiles are banned under United Nations
Security Council resolutions and the launch drew condemnation
from governments in Seoul, Washington and Tokyo.
South Korean and American forces began 11 days of joint drills,
dubbed "Freedom Shield 23", on Monday, held on a scale not seen
since 2017 to counter the North's growing threats.
Kim accused the United States and South Korea of increasing
tensions with the military drills.
(Reporting by Heekyong Yang; Editing by David Gregorio and
Sonali Paul)
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