PYONGYANG, August 19. /TASS/. The US remains the main threat to North Korea’s security, so Pyongyang will continue to strengthen its deterrent forces, Kim Yo Jong, the sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and Director of the General Affairs Department of the Workers' Party of Korea, stated.

"We will steadfastly adhere to a principled approach aimed at eliminating threats through strength and ensuring genuine peace and stability, based on the unchanging reality that the greatest threat to our state’s security interests and the regional security situation comes from the United States," the Korean Central News Agency quoted her as saying.

Kim Yo Jong also noted that Pyongyang attaches no significance to the reduction in joint military exercises with South Korea announced by US President Donald Trump. "Reducing the scale or duration of the exercises does not change the nature of these military maneuvers, which are of provocative and aggressive nature," she emphasized. According to her, the US and South Korea have conducted several joint exercises since the beginning of the year, including Freedom Shield, Freedom Flag, and Ssangmae.

"If the US side expects to present the measures taken this time as some kind of ‘gesture of goodwill,’ it will not receive the desired response," Kim Yo Jong noted. She pointed out that North Korea views the ongoing US-South Korean maneuvers as a manifestation of a hostile policy toward the Pyongyang.

Commenting on Washington’s reports about recent contacts between North Korean and US leaders, Kim Yo Jong emphasized that she knew nothing about them. At the same time, she noted that Kim Jong Un retains "fond memories and warm feelings" toward Trump. "The relationship between the two leaders remains excellent," she said.

However, Kim Yo Jong stressed that the leaders’ personal relationship does not imply a change in Washington’s policy. "The US’ hostile policy toward North Korea has not changed," she said, adding that Pyongyang’s strengthening of its deterrent forces is necessary to counter threats to the country’s security.