UN must take S. Korea－U.S. joint military exercises to Security Council： Pyongya

While the UN Security Council is looking into North Korea′s recent claim that it test－fired a submarine－launched ballistic missile，... Pyongyang has lodged a request of its own. The regime′s ambassador to the UN is pushing the council to address the joint South Korea－U.S. military drills，... which the North continue to label a ″rehearsal for war″. Connie Kim has the details. Failure to hold an emergency meeting to address the South Korea－U.S. joint military exercises would prove the council is ″Washington′s political tool″. That′s what Ja Sung－nam， the North Korean Ambassador to the UN， wrote to the Security Council last week，... according to the UN website on Sunday. Ja′s letter went on to say the SLBM test－firing was a legitimate form of deterrence against military threats posed by the annual joint drills. Dubbed ″Foal Eagle″ and ″Key Resolve″，... they took place in March and April. Pyongyang called the exercises a real nuclear war game， practice for North Korean invasion， and an effort to eliminate North Korean leadership. However， multiple diplomatic sources in Washington say North Korea didn′t respond to U.S. requests for talks in May， following the joint military exercises. Sources say Washington is trying to create momentum for dialogue with Pyongyang before another set of South Korea－U.S. joint military exercises scheduled for August. The allies are currently carrying out the largest ever joint anti－submarine drills in waters off South Korea′s southern Jeju island. The U.S. also recently asked the UN Security Council to investigate whether the SLBM test firing is a violation of UN resolutions banning the regime from carrying out any ballistic missile activities. Given these tensions，... a U.S.－ North Korea dialogue is looking unlikely. Connie Kim， Arirang News.