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North Korea "will go to war" if the US chooses to provoke it, the country's Vice Foreign Minister says.
Key points:
- Minister Han Song-ryol blames Trump for making trouble
- The US has sent an aircraft carrier to the region
- Vice-President Mike Pence travels to South Korea on Sunday
Speaking to the Associated Press in Pyongyang, Han Song-ryol said the situation on the Korean Peninsula was in a "vicious cycle" as tensions with the US and its allies deepen.
He said the US and President Donald Trump were making trouble in the region by moving an aircraft carrier strike group into Korean waters and participating in its largest-ever joint military exercises with South Korea.
Mr Han said that in the face of such actions, North Korea would "go to war if they choose".
He also said the country would continue developing its nuclear program and conduct its next nuclear test whenever its leaders saw fit.
"We certainly will not keep our arms crossed in the face of a US pre-emptive strike," he said.
He said the US was becoming "more aggressive" under Mr Trump's leadership than it had been under former president Barack Obama.
"Now we are comparing Trump's policy toward [North Korea] with the former administration's and we have concluded that it's becoming more vicious and more aggressive," he said.
"Whatever comes from US politicians, if their words are designed to overthrow the DPRK system and government, we will categorically reject them."
Mr Han also cited a tweet Mr Trump posted on Tuesday in which he said the North was "looking for trouble".
Mr Trump has tweeted that if China did not do its part to rein in Pyongyang's nuclear ambitions, the US would handle it.
"Trump is always making provocations with his aggressive words. So that's why. It's not the DPRK but the US and Trump that makes trouble," Mr Han said.
China on Friday said tension over North Korea had to be stopped from reaching an "irreversible and unmanageable stage", and called for talks leading to the denuclearisation of the Korean Peninsula.
"We call on all parties to refrain from provoking and threatening each other, whether in words or actions, and not let the situation get to an irreversible and unmanageable stage," Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said.
Trump's hamburger diplomacy comments dismissed
The Trump administration has been assessing tougher economic sanctions as well as military options to curb North Korea's nuclear ambitions.
Pyongyang, meanwhile, recently launched a ballistic missile and some experts have said it could conduct another nuclear test at virtually any time.
Many North Korea watchers believe the country could have a viable nuclear warhead and a ballistic missile capable of hitting the US mainland within the next few years.
In the AP interview, Mr Han dismissed the suggestion Mr Trump made last year during his presidential campaign that he was willing to meet Kim Jong-un, possibly over hamburgers.
"I think that was nothing more than lip service during the campaign to make himself more popular," Mr Han said.
The annual US-South Korean military exercises have consistently infuriated the North, which sees them as rehearsals for an invasion.
Washington and Seoul deny that, but reports that exercises have included "decapitation strikes" aimed at the North's leadership have fanned Pyongyang's anger.
Outwardly, there are few signs of concern in North Korea despite the political back and forth.
Instead, the country is gearing up for its biggest holiday of the year, the 105th anniversary of the birth of the late Kim Il-sung, the country's founder and present leader Kim Jong-un's grandfather.
Pence heads to Seoul
US Vice-President Mike Pence will travel to South Korea on Sunday, in what his aides have said is a sign of the US commitment to its ally in the face of rising tensions.
His Seoul stop begins a long-planned, 10-day trip to Asia.
Mr Pence plans to celebrate Easter with US and Korean troops before talks on Monday with South Korea's Acting President Hwang Kyo-ahn.
"We're going to consult with the Republic of Korea on North Korea's efforts to advance its ballistic missile and its nuclear program," a White House foreign policy adviser told reporters.
The adviser also said Mr Pence expected to talk about the "belligerence" of North Korea at stops in Tokyo, Jakarta and in Sydney.
Reuters/AP
Topics: unrest-conflict-and-war, nuclear-issues, defence-and-national-security, korea-democratic-people-s-republic-of, korea-republic-of, asia, united-states
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