North Korea has denounced the United States recent ballistic missile test as a Å“military provocation” which justifies Pyongyangâ„¢s military buildup, a report says.
On May 22, the US Air Force launched the Minuteman 3 intercontinental ballistic from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. The missile test was initially planned for mid-April, but it delayed due to tensions with North Korea.
According to a Sunday report by South Korean Yonhap news agency, North Korea’s Rodong Sinmun daily said in an editorial, Å“Today’s reality on the Korean Peninsula desperately urges our republic to strengthen our defense capacity with every means.”
Å“We do not hide the fact that we are developing (ballistic) missiles in order to secure final victory in an all-out war against the US,” the daily added.
North Korean Pyongyang Broadcasting Station radio has also slammed the test and said it shows a double standard applied by Washington.
Tensions have risen between Washington and Pyongyang after North Korea conducted its third nuclear test in February. Pyongyang had previously launched a long-range rocket on December 12, 2012.
The Korean Peninsula has been locked in a cycle of escalating military rhetoric following the participation of nuclear-capable US B-52 and B-2 stealth bombers in the joint military exercises with South Korea that ended on April 30.
The move prompted the North Korean government to step up its war rhetoric and authorize its army to launch Å“preemptive nuclear strikes” on the United States.
Pyongyang has also said its military should be prepared to attack “all US military bases in the Asia-Pacific region, including the US mainland, Hawaii, and Guam.”
On May 2, North Koreaâ„¢s official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) stated in a commentary that the escalating tension on the Korean Peninsula is attributable to the US Ëœheinous hostile policyâ„¢ toward North Korea.
MR/HN
This article originally appeared on: Press TV