NORTH KOREA: US ”provocation” threatens peace, says Pyongyang

North Korea has warned the US about using “pressure and military threats” against it as the two countries prepare for a historic summit. A Foreign Ministry official said the US was deliberately provoking the North by suggesting sanctions will not be lifted until it gives up nuclear weapons. US President Donald Trump and North Korean […]

North Korea has warned the US about using “pressure and military threats” against it as the two countries prepare for a historic summit.

A Foreign Ministry official said the US was deliberately provoking the North by suggesting sanctions will not be lifted until it gives up nuclear weapons.

US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un are due to meet in the next few weeks. It will be the first ever meeting between the two countries’ leaders.

The North Korean official, quoted by state news agency KCNA, said that Washington was “misleading public opinion” by saying the denuclearisation pledge resulted from sanctions and other pressure.

“The US is deliberately provoking [North Korea] at the time when the situation on the Korean peninsula is moving toward peace and reconciliation thanks to the historic north-south summit and the Panmunjom Declaration,” the statement said.