North Korean propaganda news site Meari criticized South Korean Defense Minister Jeong Kyeong-doo for joint military exercises between the country and the US.

Meari said that Minister Jeong has no authority to decide the fate of the US-Korea joint exercises. The news website called the South Korean Defense Minister "subordinates of ordinary US soldiers" because of "no authority", and said Seoul would eventually do what Washington decided.

"The truth is that the Korean military does not have any authority in deciding matters related to joint military exercises," the article posted by Meari today.

The comments came two days after Kim Kye-gwan, a former North Korean nuclear negotiator, mocked Seoul's efforts to pave the way for talks between Washington and Pyongyang.

North Korea has recently increased pressure on South Korea and the United States due to joint military exercises between the two countries. Pyongyang has vowed not to return to the negotiating table if Washington does not back down hostile policy. North Korea has long considered joint US-South Korea exercises as a move to prepare for invasion.

South Korea, however, asserted that it and its allies have adjusted joint drills to support diplomatic efforts toward denuclearization. South Korea's Defense Ministry spokesman Choi Hyun-soo said earlier that details of the joint exercise plan for 2020 would be decided "based on the actual situation."