North Korea threatens to respond brutally if the US attacks

Pyongyang accused Washington of escalating tensions on the Korean peninsula, warning of a "merciless response" if attacked by the US.

North Korean officers during a military parade. Photo: Japan Times.

A spokesman for a peace research institute affiliated with North Korea's Foreign Ministry said on April 13 that the US was pushing the situation on the Korean peninsula to the brink of nuclear war. Pyongyang threatened to "respond mercilessly" if attacked by the US, Yonhap reported.

The statement was made as tensions between Washington and Pyongyang increased. North Korea showed signs of preparing for its sixth nuclear test while the US sent the USS Carl Vinson aircraft carrier strike group near the Korean peninsula. The institute asserted that the US is threatening peace by deploying a series of strategic weapons capable of using nuclear weapons.

The institute condemned the US missile launch against a Syrian military base, saying that "the US conducts attacks and threats against a sovereign state while calling for peace through military force." The institute also rejected US President Donald Trump's efforts to restrain North Korea through cooperation with China.

The balance of power on the Korean peninsula. Graphics: Viet Chung.

According to VNE