 North Korea, which insists it needs a nuclear deterrent against a U.S. invasion, threatened Monday to strengthen its "deterrent force" if the United States pursues policies the communist state deems hostile. "If the United States more desperately pursues its hostile policy to isolate and stifle (North Korea) under the pretext of the 'nuclear issue' and 'human rights issue' ... the latter will react to it by further increasing its self-defensive deterrent force," an unnamed spokesman for the North Korea's Foreign Ministry said in a statement carried by the official Korean Central News Agency.
| Yeah, yeah, sea of fire, all that, heard it before. |
The spokesman condemned the North Korean Human Rights Act, a recent U.S. law aimed at improving human rights in the country. North Korea has repeatedly cited that law as an example of what it claims is Washington's hostile policy toward it. "By nature the U.S. is the worst human rights graveyard in the world," the spokesman said. "This is clearly proved by what happened in Iraq."
| It's that liberation and democracy thing. |
Efforts are under way to persuade North Korea to return to six-party nuclear talks aimed at persuading Pyongyang to give up its nuclear ambitions. However, the North has repeatedly insisted it won't return to the negotiating table until the United States abandons its "hostile" policy toward the country. Some U.S. intelligence analysts say North Korea may have up to six nuclear weapons instead of the one or two the Central Intelligence Agency estimates. North Korea says it has several plutonium-based nuclear weapons and denies U.S. allegations it has a secret uranium-based nuclear weapons program. |