North Korea claimed South Korea “pulled the final pin from the grenade” with its partial suspension of the 2018 inter-Korean military deal in response to the North's military spy satellite launch.

In an editorial by the state-run Korean Central News Agency released on Thursday, Pyongyang contended that Seoul’s recent joint military exercise with Washington and Tokyo is evidence of a nefarious scheme against the regime.

The North claimed the conventional approach to a crisis of power by conservatives in South Korea is to stoke internal anxiety over security when their anti-Pyongyang antics get them stuck in a corner.

Referring to its termination of the 2018 deal, the North warned of a "tragic outcome" for the South.

Seoul's unification ministry, in response, expressed a strong regret, stressing that it is always open to inter-Korean dialogue aimed at diffusing tensions on the Korean Peninsula.