The North Korean Rodong Sinmun newspaper said that about 800,000 students and workers expressed their desire to enlist in the army to confront the United States, in conjunction with 11-day joint exercises between South Korean and American forces in the region.
North Korea 's official newspaper reported Saturday that hundreds of thousands of citizens in the country have volunteered to join its army or re-enlisted to fight against the United States.
And the Rodong Sinmun newspaper reported that on Friday alone, about 800,000 students and workers expressed their desire to enlist or rejoin the army to confront the United States.
This comes after North Korea launched Thursday its intercontinental ballistic missile Hwasong-17 in response to military exercises between the United States and South Korea.
North Korea fired missiles into the sea between the Korean peninsula and Japan, hours before the South Korean president headed to Tokyo for a summit that discussed ways to confront the nuclear-armed North Korea.
North Korea's ballistic missiles are banned by United Nations Security Council resolutions, and the launch drew condemnation from governments in Seoul, Washington and Tokyo.
On Monday, the South Korean and American forces began joint exercises that will last for 11 days, dubbed "Freedom Shield 23", and are taking place on a scale that has not been repeated since 2017 to confront the growing threats from North Korea.
The North Korean leader accused the United States and South Korea of increasing tension with these military exercises.