North Korea threatened Japan on Tuesday after Tokyo announced it would massively increase defense spending.
The North Korean foreign ministry claimed that Japan was attempting to return to being an aggressive military power, as it was before and during World War II, the Washington Times reported.
Last week, the Japanese government said it would double military spending, announcing that the increased budget was necessary to protect itself from North Korea or China in advent of an attack.
"Japan's foolish attempt to satiate its black-hearted greed – the building up of its military invasion capability with the pretext of a legitimate exercise of self-defense rights – cannot be justified and tolerated," the North Korean foreign ministry said in a state media release.
White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan on Friday called Japan’s increased military budget a "bold step," Fox News reported.
"Today, Japan has taken a bold and historic step to strengthen and defend the free and open Indo-Pacific," Sullivan said in a statement. "The new strategy reinforces Prime Minister Kishida’s deep commitment to international peace and nuclear nonproliferation and sets the stage for Japan’s leadership in 2023."
North Korea has launched dozens of missiles in 2022, including firing a rocket over Japanese territory.