US officials have urged North Korea to avoid missile launches and other acts that could raise tension with South Korea, amid deadlocked negotiations for Pyongyang's nuclear disarmament.

The officials also regretted that North Korea had now barred UN inspectors from its nuclear sites following its moves to restart a nuclear program it had shut down last year under the six-party disarmament negotiations.

"We would urge North Korea to avoid any steps that increase tension on the peninsula," State Department spokesman Sean McCormack told reporters on Thursday when asked about rising tensions over the disputed Korean maritime borders.

Two days after it fired short-range missiles in the Yellow Sea, North Korea on Thursday accused South Korean ships of violating its territorial waters there and warned that escalating tensions could lead to a clash.

McCormack could not confirm whether North Korea had test-fired missiles, but added: "I would remind the North Korean government ... that missile-related activities are prohibited under UN Security Council Resolution 1718."

Full article here