A North Korean military unit carries missiles on parade of military force

SEOUL, May 11 (IslamOnline.net & News Agencies) - North Korea warned Sunday, May 11, that it would take "an emergency measure" if the United States opted to resolve the nuclear crisis by force.

The warning came from Rodong Sinmun, the North's ruling Workers Party newspaper, as South Korean President Roh Moo-Hyun left for Washington for a summit with U.S. President George W. Bush, Agence France-Presse (AFP) reported.

"If the U.S. does not drop its hostile policy toward the DPRK (North Korea) and finally opts to settle the nuclear issue by force, the DPRK will be left with no option but to take an emergency measure," Rodong said.

The newspaper did not elaborate on what the measure may entail.

The daily insisted it was "quite just" for North Korea to have built up "a deterrent force" in response to a possible U.S. strike against the Stalinist country.

North Korea threatened Monday, May 5, to scuttle all nuclear talks unless the United States responds positively to Pyongyang's offer to dismantle its nuclear program in exchange for economic and diplomatic payoffs.

A North Korean foreign ministry spokesman blasted Monday Washington's report last week that kept Pyongyang on a list of "state supporters of terrorism" along with Iran, Cuba, Libya, Sudan and Syria.

"The U.S. smear campaign against the DPRK will only make the settlement of the nuclear issue between the DPRK and the U.S. more complicated and aggravate the situation," the spokesman said.   

Rodong, in a separate commentary, slammed Washington's dismissal of the proposals.

"This is neither a threat nor blackmail but a legitimate self-defensive measure of the DPRK to cope with the U.S. hostile policy toward it," it said.

Since the crisis erupted in October, the United States has insisted that North Korea verifiably and irreversibly end both its nuclear programs based on plutonium and enriched uranium.