On Monday, North Korea denounced the UN atomic watchdog for joining a US-led pressure campaign and "heating up" a resolution regarding its nuclear programs, labeling it a "paid trumpeter" for Washington.
An unnamed spokesman of Pyongyang's Ministry of Nuclear Power Industry issued a statement criticizing a resolution adopted on Friday at the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) general conference that urges the North to limit its nuclear programs.
North Korea Fumes at UN Nuclear Agency
The spokesman characterized the resolution as the "result of a conspiracy" by the United States and its allies, claiming that North Korea's status as a nuclear weapons state is now "irreversible."
According to state media KCNA, he said, "Such a farce by hostile forces reveals their nefarious intent to cover up their criminal acts of gravely endangering the international nuclear non-proliferation system and rationalize their hostile policy toward the DPRK."
As North Korea seeks to arm Russia in exchange for military technology, Seoul is wary. The spokesman also accused IAEA chief Rafael Grossi of "taking the lead in generating the atmosphere of pressurizing the DPRK" by "spreading a false tale" about an imminent nuclear test.
Grossi warned a year ago that the reclusive nation could conduct nuclear tests for the first time since 2017 if it resumed its isolation. Since 2009, when Pyongyang expelled IAEA inspectors and resumed nuclear testing, the IAEA has not had access to North Korea.
At the 67th IAEA General Conference in Vienna, Austria, last week, IAEA member states adopted a resolution urging the recalcitrant regime to suspend its nuclear weapons program and abide by its obligations under UN Security Council resolutions.
Noting that North Korea withdrew from the nuclear agency in 1994, the spokesperson asserted that the IAEA has "neither qualifications nor justification to say this or that" regarding the North's exercise of sovereignty.
Per Korea Herald, the spokesperson then attacked IAEA Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi, accusing him of "pressurizing the DPRK" and "spreading a fraudulent tale" about an imminent seventh nuclear test to "flatter the US and the West."
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Kim Jong Un Warns of 'New Cold War'
Meanwhile, Kim Jong Un has threatened a "new Cold War" and has pledged to expand his nuclear arsenal.
In response to American provocations, the paramount leader of North Korea stated the need to "accelerate nuclear modernization" at a parliamentary assembly.
Per DailyExpress, this comes days after the North Korean parliament revised the country's constitution to make its nuclear status permanent.
Article 58 of Chapter Four of the Constitution states that the nation "develops highly nuclear weapons to assure the rights to existence and development of the country, deter conflict, and defend peace and stability in the region and the world."
Kim Jong Un recently returned from Russia, where he and Vladimir Putin exchanged promises of military and technological assistance. North Korea could provide artillery shells, rockets, and missiles, while Russia could assist in launching a surveillance satellite into orbit.
In response to rising hostility, the United States and South Korea have dispatched aircraft carriers, nuclear-capable bombers, and nuclear submarines to conduct exercises as a display of force.
