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WORLD NEWS Monday 4 July 2022
North Korea slams U.S.-South Korea-Japan military cooperation

By HYUNG-JIN KIM Korea's escalating weap-
Associated Press ons tests.
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) The North Korean state-
— North Korea on Sunday ment accused the United
slammed the United States, States of exaggerating ru-
South Korea and Japan mors about North Korean
for pushing to boost their threats "to provide an ex-
trilateral military coopera- cuse for attaining military
tion targeting the North, supremacy over the Asia-
warning that the move is Pacific region including the
prompting urgent calls for Korean Peninsula."
the country to reinforce its U.S. officials have said
military capability. Washington has no hostile
North Korea has long cited intent toward Pyongyang
what it calls hostility by the and urged it to return to
United States and its allies disarmament talks without
as a reason to pursue a any preconditions. North
nuclear program. Sunday's Korea has rejected the U.S.
statement comes as North overture, saying it would fo-
Korea's neighbors say the cus on buttressing its nucle-
country is ready for its first ar deterrent unless the Unit-
nuclear test in five years as President Joe Biden, center, meets with South Korea's President Yoon Suk Yeol, left, and Japan's ed States drops its hostile
part of its provocative run Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, right, during the NATO summit in Madrid, June 29, 2022. policies toward the North,
of weapons tests this year. Associated Press an apparent reference to
"The prevailing situation U.S.-led economic sanc-
more urgently calls for summit last week, during North Korea views U.S.-led dent Yoon Suk Yeol said the tions and its regular military
building up the country's which they underscored military exercises in the re- importance of trilateral co- training with South Korea.
defense to actively cope the need to strengthen gion, particularly ones with operation has grown in the North Korea claimed the
with the rapid aggravation their cooperation to deal rival South Korea, as an in- face of North Korea's ad- recent NATO summit proves
of the security environment with North Korean nuclear vasion rehearsal, though vanced nuclear program, an alleged U.S. plan to
of the Korean Peninsula threats. Washington and Seoul while Japanese Prime Min- contain Russia and China
and the rest of the world," "The chief executives of have repeatedly said they ister Fumio Kishida said joint by achieving the "militariza-
the North Korean Foreign the U.S., Japan and South have no intentions of at- anti-missile drills would be tion of Europe" and form-
Ministry said in a statement, Korea put their heads to- tacking the North. important to deter North ing a NATO-like alliance
without elaborating how it gether for confrontation During the recent trilateral Korean threats. in Asia. It said "the reckless
would boost its military ca- with (North Korea) and dis- meeting, U.S. President Joe Earlier in June, the defense military moves of the U.S.
pacity. cussed the dangerous joint Biden said he was "deeply chiefs of the U.S., South and its vassal forces" could
The statement took issue military countermeasures concerned" about North Korea and Japan agreed lead to dangerous con-
with a trilateral meeting against it including the Korea's continued ballistic to resume their combined sequences like a nuclear
among the U.S., South Ko- launch of tripartite joint mili- missile tests and apparent missile warning and track- war simultaneously taking
rean and Japanese leaders tary exercises," the state- plans to conduct a nuclear ing exercises as part of their place in both Europe and
on the sidelines of a NATO ment said. test. South Korean Presi- efforts to deal with North Asia-Pacific.q

Several people dead in Copenhagen shopping mall shooting

By JAN M. OLSEN and KARL out. "We do not have in- at the shopping center with
RITTER formation that others are his family when he heard
Associated Press involved. This is what we "three-four bangs. Really
COPENHAGEN, Denmark know now." loud bangs. It sounded like
(AP) — A gunman opened He didn't provide any fur- the shots were being fired
fire in a Copenhagen shop- ther details on the victims. just next to the store."
ping mall, one of the larg- The shopping center is on Copenhagen Mayor So-
est of its kind in Scandina- the outskirts of Copen- phie H. Andersen tweeted:
via, killing several people hagen just across from a "Terrible reports of shoot-
and wounding several oth- subway line that connects ing in Fields. We do not yet
ers on Sunday, police said. the city center with the in- know for sure how many
The suspected gunman, ternational airport. A major were injured or dead, but it
who is in custody, is a highway also runs adjacent is very serious."
22-year-old Danish man to Fields, which opened in Police said they were first
who was detained near 2004. alerted to the shooting at An ambulance and armed police outside the Field's shopping
the Fields shopping mall on Images from the scene 5:36 p.m. (1536 GMT; 11:36 center, in Orestad, Copenhagen, Denmark, Sunday, July 3,
the southern outskirts of the showed people running out a.m. EDT). A huge presence 2022, after reports of shots fired.
capital, said police inspec- of the mall, and Denmark's of heavily-armed police of- Associated Press
tor Søren Thomassen, head TV2 broadcaster posted a ficers was on hand, with
of the Copenhagen police photo of a man being put several fire department ve- say more about the person Direction band member
operations unit. on a stretcher. Witnesses hicles also parked outside concerned," Copenhagen Harry Styles was scheduled
"We know that there are said people were crying the mall. police tweeted. "We have to be held at 8 p.m. (1800
several dead" and "several and hid in shops. "One person has been ar- a massive presence at GMT; 2 p.m. EDT) at the
injured," Thomassen told a Laurits Hermansen told rested in connection with Fields and are working on nearby Royal Arena. It was
news conference, adding Danish broadcaster DR that the shooting at Fields. We getting an overview." unclear whether the con-
that terror can't be ruled he was in a clothing store currently are not able to A concert by former One cert would go ahead.q