North Korea slammed South Korea for exacerbating tensions on the Korean Peninsula as Seoul and Washington launched joint preliminary drills this week ahead of their annual combined military training.

Citing a statement linked to a Buddhist temple in South Hwanghae Province on Tuesday, the North's propaganda website Ryomyong accused the South's puppet government of aggravating the peninsula's military tensions and of threatening conflict.

In the run-up to the Ulchi Freedom Shield(UFS) exercise scheduled to run from Monday through September 1, the allies began the four-day preliminary training earlier in the day with an emphasis on crisis management.

Another cited statement under the name Choe Rim said some progressive civic groups in the South have protested against the Yoon Suk Yeol administration's anti-North Korea war maneuvers.

There is speculation that Pyongyang, which considers the allies' joint exercises as war games, may respond with a military provocation.