'Warmonger' Donald Trump's Asia tour will only accelerate Pyongyang's push for nuclear deterrent: North Korean state media

Seoul: North Korea on Saturday slammed “warmonger” Donald Trump’s Asia tour, saying it would only accelerate Pyongyang’s push for a full-fledged nuclear deterrent. Trump has tried to rally support to curb Pyongyang’s rogue weapons programme during his trip, urging regional powers to stand united against the North Korea’s government. [caption id=“attachment_4204899” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] File image of US president Donald Trump. AP[/caption] In the first comments on the US leader’s visit by a North Korean official, a Pyongyang foreign ministry spokesman said it was a “warmonger’s visit for confrontation to rid the DPRK of its self-defensive nuclear deterrence”, according to the state-run KCNA news agency. Tensions over North Korea’s weapons programme have surged in recent months, as Pyongyang carried out a sixth nuclear test, by far its largest to date and test-fired dozens of missiles, some capable of reaching the US mainland. In a speech to the South Korean parliament on Wednesday, Trump warned Pyongyang not to underestimate the United States, while offering leader Kim Jong-Un a better future if he gives up his nuclear ambitions. But in its retort today, the North said Trump’s warnings “can never frighten us or put a stop to our advance”, but rather “pushes us to speed up the efforts to accomplish the great cause of completing the state nuclear force”.