US must recognise N Korea as ‘nuclear weapons state’: KCNA

Seoul, Sep 11 (AFP) A defiant North Korea today restatedits demand for recognition as a "legitimate" nuclear-armedstate, as world powers pondered ways to punish Pyongyang forits latest and largest atomic test. The North also vowed to increase its nuclear strike force"in quality and in quantity", two days after its fifth test ina decade sparked international condemnation and moves fortougher UN sanctions. In Japan, a visiting senior US envoy said Washington andTokyo were seeking "the strongest possible" measures inresponse. North Korea insists that its missile and nuclear tests arenecessary to counter what it says is a US nuclear threat toits independence. A statement today from a foreign ministry spokesman inPyongyang mocked President Barack Obama’s "totally bankrupt"policy on the country. "Obama is trying hard to deny the DPRK’s (North Korea’s)strategic position as a legitimate nuclear weapons state butit is as foolish an act as trying to eclipse the sun with apalm," said the statement quoted by the official KCNA newsagency. Friday’s test came only eight months after the previousone and was almost twice as powerful, at an estimated 10kilotons. Most worryingly for the international community, the Northclaimed it had been a miniaturised warhead that could bemounted on a missile. The UN Security Council agreed Friday to start work on newmeasures — even though five sets of UN sanctions since thefirst nuclear test in 2006 have failed to halt the North’snuclear drive. Sung Kim, the US State Department’s special representativefor North Korea policy, said Washington and Tokyo would workclosely in the Security Council and beyond "to come up withthe strongest possible measure against North Korea’s latestaction". He also suggested the US may launch its own unilateralsanctions in response to "the provocative and unacceptablebehaviour by the North Koreans". KCNA insisted today that North Koreans were delighted byFriday’s detonation. "The test demonstrated the dignity of the country guidedby the iron-willed commander as well as the strength of theKorean people," scientist Choe Kwang-Ho was quoted as saying.(AFP)AYP