SEOUL // US and South Korean troops began annual military drills today and North Korea said it had put its armed forces on full combat readiness in response to the exercises, heightening tensions on the Korean peninsula.
North Korea, which is believed to be preparing to test-fire its longest-range ballistic missile, also said it would regard the shooting down of any of its rockets as an act of war.
The North Korean army said in a statement the drills were a "provocation" that would only occur "on the eve of a war", and cut off a telephone hotline with the South's military.
Pyongyang regularly accuses the United States and South Korea of aggressive intentions before the exercises, which have been held for years without major incident.
But North Korean media has been more strident about these drills, which come as Pyongyang is making preparations to test-fire its Taepodong-2 missile and at a time of speculation about the health of North Korean leader Kim Jong-il.
North Korea has repeatedly said it is preparing to launch a satellite as part of a peaceful space programme.
"Shooting our satellite for peaceful purposes will precisely mean a war," a spokesman for the North's Korean People's Army said in a statement carried by the official KCNA news agency.
Last week the unpredictable state said it could not guarantee the safety of South Korean civilian aircraft flying near its airspace. That forced several airliners to alter their routes.
The military drills are scheduled to run until March 20, and are longer and on a greater scale than in previous years.
The aim is to test the defensive readiness of US and South Korean forces ahead of the transfer of wartime command from the US to the South Korean military in the next several years.
Troops are being mobilised throughout South Korea, including Marines who will conduct live-fire drills north of Seoul, which is less than two hours drive from North Korea. A US aircraft carrier will take part in the exercises, the US military said.
South Korea, Japan and the United States have said they see no difference between a satellite and a missile launch because they use the same technology and the same rocket. The North is barred from launching a ballistic missile under UN sanctions.
* Reuters
The Bio
Name: Lynn Davison
Profession: History teacher at Al Yasmina Academy, Abu Dhabi
Children: She has one son, Casey, 28
Hometown: Pontefract, West Yorkshire in the UK
Favourite book: The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho
Favourite Author: CJ Sansom
Favourite holiday destination: Bali
Favourite food: A Sunday roast
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Formula Middle East Calendar (Formula Regional and Formula 4)
Round 1: January 17-19, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 2: January 22-23, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 3: February 7-9, Dubai Autodrome – Dubai
Round 4: February 14-16, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 5: February 25-27, Jeddah Corniche Circuit – Saudi Arabia
NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
Things Heard & Seen
Directed by: Shari Springer Berman, Robert Pulcini
Starring: Amanda Seyfried, James Norton
2/5
THE SPECS
Engine: 6.75-litre twin-turbocharged V12 petrol engine
Power: 420kW
Torque: 780Nm
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Price: From Dh1,350,000
On sale: Available for preorder now
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
The White Lotus: Season three
Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
Results
United States beat UAE by three wickets
United States beat Scotland by 35 runs
UAE v Scotland – no result
United States beat UAE by 98 runs
Scotland beat United States by four wickets
Fixtures
Sunday, 10am, ICC Academy, Dubai - UAE v Scotland
Admission is free
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Zayed Sustainability Prize
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BlacKkKlansman
Director: Spike Lee
Starring: John David Washington; Adam Driver
Five stars
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Killing of Qassem Suleimani
The Saudi Cup race card
1 The Jockey Club Local Handicap (TB) 1,800m (Dirt) $500,000
2 The Riyadh Dirt Sprint (TB) 1,200m (D) $1.500,000
3 The 1351 Turf Sprint 1,351m (Turf) $1,000,000
4 The Saudi Derby (TB) 1600m (D) $800,000
5 The Neom Turf Cup (TB) 2,100m (T) $1,000,000
6 The Obaiya Arabian Classic (PB) 2,000m (D) $1,900,000
7 The Red Sea Turf Handicap (TB) 3,000m (T) $2,500,000
8 The Saudi Cup (TB) 1,800m (D) $20,000,000
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Various Artists
Habibi Funk: An Eclectic Selection Of Music From The Arab World (Habibi Funk)
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WHAT ARE NFTs?
Non-fungible tokens (NFTs) are tokens that represent ownership of unique items. They allow the tokenisation of things such as art, collectibles and even real estate.
An NFT can have only one official owner at one time. And since they're minted and secured on the Ethereum blockchain, no one can modify the record of ownership, not even copy-paste it into a new one.
This means NFTs are not interchangeable and cannot be exchanged with other items. In contrast, fungible items, such as fiat currencies, can be exchanged because their value defines them rather than their unique properties.
