The Japan-Korea for Scientific and Educational Interchange issued a statement on March 7 branding the U.S.-south Korea joint war drills as dangerous moves for a preemptive attack on the DPRK.

The statement went on:

The Korean War which started in 1950 is not yet over. It is in the state of ceasefire.

The U.S. and south Korea have staged large-scale war drills every year from a long ago.

The war drills that have repeated in a fragile state of ceasefire are very dangerous provocations which may lead to the second Korean War.

The DPRK conducted the third underground nuclear test as part of countermeasures against the U.S. moves to stifle it, taking issue with its satellite launch for peaceful purposes.

The world has witnessed a lot of satellite launches and nuclear tests so far, but no resolutions on sanctions were adopted by the UN over them.

The U.S. and its allies conducted nuclear tests and launched satellites recently, but UN has never found fault with them.

This is double standards and an undisguised discriminating step against the DPRK.

We vehemently condemn such behavior.

We will stage a positive action for peace in Northeast Asia including the Korean Peninsula.

The Gunma Prefectural People's Council for Japan-Korea Friendship and Solidarity issued the following statement on March 8:

The U.S. and south Korea should immediately halt their joint war drills for aggression.

For peace on the Korean Peninsula the U.S. should resume dialogue with the DPRK and replace the Armistice Agreement with a peace treaty.