NORTH KOREA REACTS STRONGLY TO SANCTIONS BY U.S.

North Korea had reacted sharply at the United States sanctions which is in response to its recent hypersonic missile tests this week and vowed a “stronger and certain reaction” to the Western world’s attempt to halt its weapons programs.

In a statement, North Korea’s Foreign Ministry said, “The pursuit of the advanced hypersonic missiles system, which is designed to evade existing defenses, is North Korea’s legitimate right. Washington’s move to slap sanctions on North Koreans who advanced its nuclear and ballistic weapons programs was a dangerous escalation.” It added, “The United States is intentionally escalating the situation even with the activation of independent sanctions, not content with referring to the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea’s just activity to the UN Security Council. If the U.S. adopts such a confrontational stance, the DPRK will be forced to take a stronger and certain reaction to it,”. The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea is the official name of North Korea.

The recent events have up the ante in the Korean peninsula while the United States is pushing North Korea to return to nuclear disarmament talks while the ruling regime in Pyongyang had stepped up its production of fissile material for nuclear bombs and tested new systems to deliver atomic warheads.

Tensions between Washington and Pyongyang increased as North Korea tested two missiles within a week which are designed to deploy a hypersonic glide vehicle that can maneuver at high speeds during an unpowered flight to strike a target and Pyongyang claimed that they hit a target 1,000 kilometers away during the tests.

After the tests, Washington designated five North Koreans living overseas — one in Russia, and four in China — for aiding the country’s weapons programs and US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said, “These designations convey our serious and ongoing concern about the DPRK’s continued proliferation activities and those who support it. We remain committed to seeking dialogue and diplomacy with the DPRK and call on the DPRK to engage in negotiations.”

North Korea, officially the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK),is a country in East Asia, a totalitarian dictatorship, constituting the northern part of the Korean Peninsula. It borders China and Russia to the north and South Korea to the south at the Korean Demilitarized Zone. North Korea, like its southern counterpart, claims to be the legitimate government of the entire peninsula and adjacent islands. It holds elections, though they have been described by independent observers as sham elections as the country revolves around the personality of the Kim dynasty and their loyal elite club.