International

North Korea: Sanctions Are a 'Declaration of War'

Published October 17, 2006 at 1:00 PM PDT

This story was published more than 18 years ago.

A North Korean man walks near the banks of the Yalu River, opposite the Chinese border city of Dandong on Oct. 17 in Uiju, Democratic People's Republic of Korea.

North Korea says it considers U.N. sanctions meant to punish the country for its nuclear test a "declaration of war."

In a statement, the North Korean government said Tuesday that it is "quite nonsensical to expect the DPRK to yield to the pressure and threat of someone at this time when it has become a nuclear weapons state."

Meanwhile, Japan and South Korea report that North Korea might be preparing to test a second nuclear weapon. Media reports have suggested the country has warned China that is planning another test.

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Condoleezza Rice has left for a trip to Asia this week to build support for the sanctions that the U.N. Security Council approved to penalize North Korea for its nuclear test.

"This would be an extraordinarily unwise move by the North Koreans," Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs Nicholas Burns says. "It would be an act of belligerency, it would not be understood by any country in the world."

Such a test, Burns says, "would just reinforce all those doubts" that countries have formed about North Korea's leadership.

Robert Siegel talks with Burns.

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