North Korea on Thursday said nuclear war on the peninsula is an “established fact” and blamed military exercises between United States and South Korea forces and “violent war remarks” by high-ranking US officials for provoking the already tense situation.

“The large-scale nuclear war exercises conducted by the US in succession are creating touch-and-go situation on the Korean peninsula and series of violent war remarks coming from the US high-level politicians amid such circumstances have made an outbreak of war on the Korean peninsula an established fact,” North Korea state media KCNA reported, citing a Foreign Ministry spokesperson.

“The remaining question now is: when will the war break out,” it added.

The spokesperson called out members of the Trump administration, including national security adviser H.R. McMaster, for saying chances of war with the regime are “increasing every day” and CIA Director Mike Pompeo for remarking that President Kim Jong Un doesn’t understand the serious situation he has put his country in.

“Worse still, the CIA director has made a provocation against us by impudently criticizing our supreme leadership which is the heart of our people,” the spokesperson said.

​The US and South Korea are conducting joint military drills in the region called “Vigilant Ace” that are designed to increase readiness between the two countries and act as a sign of deterrence against Pyongyang’s continuing threats.

A B1-B bomber flew from a base in Guam, a US territory in the Pacific, to the peninsula Wednesday to take part in the exercises, which are expected to end Friday.

​North Korea considers the drills a rehearsal for launching a military strike.​

“We do not wish for a war but shall not hide from it, and should the US miscalculate our patience and light the fuse for a nuclear war, we will surely make the US dearly pay the consequences with our mighty nuclear force which we have consistently strengthened,” North Korea said.

The comments come a week after Kim’s regime launched its most advanced intercontinental ballistic missile yet, flying high and far enough to be capable of striking the US mainland.

It has also been experimenting with nuclear devices with the aim of attaching a nuclear warhead to an ICBM and hitting the US.

China, which Trump has been pressuring to exert influence on its trading partner, called for all sides to stand down.

“We hope all relevant parties can maintain calm and restraint and take steps to alleviate tensions and not provoke each other,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said. “The outbreak of war is not in any side’s interest. The ones that will suffer the most are ordinary people.”

With Post wires