North Korea has warned of “indiscriminate” nuclear strikes on the US and South Korea as they begin their largest ever military drills.
The exercises, involving more than 300,000 personnel, are an annual event and always generate tension.
The order for a “pre-emptive nuclear strike of justice” was made in a statement put out by Pyongyang.
Such rhetoric is not uncommon, and experts doubt the North’s ability to put nuclear warheads on its missiles.
North Korea sees the annual US-South Korean war games as a rehearsal for invasion.
Last year, it threatened to turn Washington into a “sea of fire”.