North Korea ready to retaliate against US over UN sanctions

North Korea says it will retaliate the latest round of sanctions approved by the United Nations (UN) and championed by the United States.

According to a North Korean state media, Pyongyang condemned the action describing it as a “flagrant violation of its sovereignty.” It vowed retaliation against Washington.

The UN Security Council had unanimously adopted new sanctions Saturday in response to Pyongyang’s long-range ballistic missile tests on July 4 and July 28.

The measures were aimed to make it harder for North Korea to make money across the globe.

They target North Korea’s primary exports including coal, iron and seafood; the UN also made attempt to cut off its additional revenue streams by targeting some of its banks and joint ventures with foreign companies.

Speaking at the ASEAN Regional Forum on Monday, North Korean Foreign Minister Ri Yong Ho blamed the U.S. for the current situation on the Korean Peninsula and said Pyongyang’s “possession of nuclear weapons and intercontinental ballistic missiles is a legitimate option for self-defence.

Ri Yong Ho said their nuclear weapon development was a self-defence in the face of a clear and real nuclear threat posed by the U.S.

“We will, under no circumstances, put the nukes and ballistic rockets on the negotiating table,” Ri said, adding Pyongyang would “teach the US a severe lesson” if it used military force against North Korea.

Later on Monday North Korea released a statement via its permanent mission to the United Nations calling the United States “frenzied” and “desperate.”

The statement said the U.S. is “trying to drive the situation of the Korean peninsula to the brink of nuclear war, running amuck to conduct missile drill against the DPRK and deploying massive strategic equipment to the peninsula.”

North Korea’s state-run KCNA news agency said the country’s missile launches were a “stern warning to the U.S.,” and warned Washington against “believing that its land is safe across the ocean.”

KCNA accused the U.S. of “trying to drive the situation of the Korean Peninsula to the brink of nuclear war” and pushing the UN to pass new sanctions.

“North Korea will make the U.S. pay dearly for all the heinous crimes it commits against the state and people of this country,” KCNA said.