PYONGYANG, North Korea (AP) - North Korea accused the U.S. of hostility on Tuesday for suspending an agreement to provide food aid following Pyongyang's widely criticized rocket launch, and warned of retaliatory measures in response.
North Korea's Foreign Ministry also rejected the U.N. Security Council's condemnation of Friday's launch of a long-range rocket as "unreasonable," and reasserted the nation's right to develop a civilian space program.
North Korea fired a three-stage rocket Friday over the Yellow Sea in defiance of international warnings against what the U.S. and other nations said would be seen as a violation of bans against nuclear and missile activity.
North Korean officials called the launch a peaceful bid to send an observation satellite into space, timed to commemorate the 100th anniversary Sunday of the birth of late North Korea founder Kim Il Sung. The launch was a failure, with the rocket splintering into pieces less than two minutes after takeoff.
Condemnation was swift, with the U.S. and others calling it a covert test of rocket technology that could be used to fire a long-range missile fitted with a nuclear warhead.
Washington immediately halted a plan brokered in February to provide North Korea with much-needed food aid in exchange for a suspension of its nuclear and missile programs.