NKorea vows to retain atomic bombs until US 'threat' ends

AFP
Monday, Feb 2, 2009

North Korea's military vowed Monday to keep atomic weapons until the United States removes its nuclear threat, reiterating a tough stance amid stalled disarmament talks.

"As long as there is no nuclear dismantlement in the South to remove the US nuclear threat, dismantlement to remove nuclear weapons in the DPRK (North Korea) won't be realised," a spokesman for the North's General Chiefs of Staff was quoted as saying.

South Korea's Yonhap news agency, which monitors media in the communist state, said the spokesman's statement was carried on state television.

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The spokesman said denuclearisation of the Korean peninsula does not only mean disarmament of the North but should also include verification of alleged nuclear facilities in South Korea, Yonhap reported.

The foreign ministry in Pyongyang, staking out a tough position for the incoming US administration, took a similar stance last month.

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