North Korean Ruling Party Compares Possible US Maritime Blockade with Declaring War
TEHRAN (Tasnim) - On November 29, North Korea tested a new intercontinental ballistic missile, the Hwasong-15, which Pyongyang claims is capable of reaching any target in the continental United States.
"The [possible] maritime blockade by the United States is an absolutely unacceptable violation of state sovereignty… We will view the maritime blockade by the United States and their allies as an act of aggression against North Korea's sovereignty and as yet another official declaration of war," the Rodong Sinmun, which is the official newspaper of the Central Committee of the North Korean Workers' Party, said Sunday.
In the wake of the latest missile launch by North Korea in late November, US State Secretary Rex Tillerson said that "the international community must take additional measures to enhance maritime security, including the right to interdict maritime traffic transporting goods to and from" North Korea, Sputnik reported.
The naval blockade was also pushed for by Washington during the discussion of sanctions against North Korea in September, but the provision was not included in the resolution since China and Russia opposed such measures.
While the tensions on the Korean Peninsula have reached an unprecedented level this summer amid North Korea's missile launches, Russia and China have proposed the so-called "double freeze" plan, which stipulates the simultaneous halt of Pyongyang's nuclear tests and US-South Korean joint drills, which have repeatedly been slammed as provocative by the leadership of the DPRK. However, Washington has rejected the plan.
