Pyongyang criticizes UN SC sanctions resolution, vows response
MOSCOW. Dec 1 (Interfax) - Pyongyang has promised to take "even more powerful measures" in response to the adoption of UN Security Council Resolution 2321 introducing additional sanctions against North Korea.
"The drafting of the current 'resolution on sanctions' that completely denies our sovereignty and our right to existence and development will lead to an even more powerful response and self-defense measures of our country," the North Korean Foreign Ministry's spokesman said in a statement obtained by Interfax on Thursday.
The North Korean Foreign Ministry also blamed the United States for the possible escalation of the situation on the Korean peninsula. "Sanctions will inevitably breed only an escalation of tensions. If the situation on the Korean peninsula and in the region develops into an uncontrolled state, the main culprit behind the drafting of the resolution on sanctions, the U.S., will bear full responsibility," the spokesman said.
"The UN Security Council has no right to ban demonstration of the right to self-defense of a sovereign state, including nuclear tests and measures to bolster defense capabilities," the statement reads.
"There is no article or provision that says that nuclear tests are a threat to peace and security on the planet in either the UN Charter or other international laws," it reads.
The September test of a nuclear warhead in North Korea is a response to "the threat, sanctions and pressure of the U.S. and hostile forces that condemn our demonstration of our rightful sovereign rights," the statement reads.
The U.S. and its allies are mistaken if they think that "sanctions and pressure can make us refuse from nuclear weapons or destroy our status as a nuclear power," the spokesman said.
"It is force and arbitrariness, not the law, that govern current international relations, and in such conditions force is needed to protect the country's sovereignty, while one has to respond to a nuclear threat of hostile forces with nuclear weapons," the statement reads.
On Wednesday, the UN Security Council unanimously approved Resolution 2321 introducing new sanctions against North Korea.
The economic sanctions mainly limit the export of coal, as well as of copper, nickel, silver and zinc, from North Korea to UN member states.
The resolution bans the sale of helicopters and vessels to North Korea.
It also introduces a number of sanctions against North Korean diplomatic missions.
The blacklist of North Korean citizens banned from traveling to UN countries will be extended to include ten more names of individuals and organizations.
The resolution also requires the baggage of all travelers to and from North Korea to be screened for prohibited items.
