Seoul: North Korea on Saturday reaffirmed its commitment to bolstering its defensive capabilities to deter what it calls "provocative attempts" by South Korea and the United States, the North's state media reported on Saturday.
"The DPRK's bolstering of its self-defensive capabilities is an essential requirement for deterring rivals' ever-increasing various provocative attempts and ensuring the security of the state," read a press statement of Pyongyang's defence policy chief, Yonhap news agency reported quoting the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).
DPRK is the acronym of the North's official name, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.
The statement was released a day after the commander of the US Northern Command, General Gregory Guillot, said before the US Senate Armed Services Committee that the North's newest Intercontinental Ballistic Missile (ICBM) could pose a direct threat to the US mainland and overwhelm its defences.
Guillot said Pyongyang may be moving towards producing new ICBMs capable of striking North America. Pyongyang's defence official slammed the US General's remarks, accusing the US of falsely charging North Korea of making "threats" that are "non-existent."
"The US describing this as a 'threat' only proves that it is hostile to the DPRK," the official said, noting the US is trying to justify its "adventurous military ambitions." (IANS)
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