North Korea harshly criticized recent joint military exercises between the United States and Japan, accusing Tokyo of attempting to "realize great power military status while harboring ambitions of reinvasion."

The North's state-run Korean Central News Agency(KCNA) on Wednesday said the allies are "frequently conducting" provocative military training, citing joint large-scale air drills from February 3.

The exercises on Japan's northern coast included the deployment of a B-52H strategic bomber as well as F-16 and F-2 fighter jets. 

The KCNA said such drills are part of a "blindly aggressive act that severely threatens the region."

In an apparent reference to last month's multilateral naval exercise involving South Korea, the U.S., Japan, Australia and New Zealand dubbed "Sea Dragon 2020," the agency also criticized Seoul for participating in the event.