The Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) on Thursday condemned the US unilateral scrapping of the US-DPRK Agreed Framework, saying it would abide by the "simultaneous actions" principle in dealing with issues related to the United States.

"It is necessary to settle any issue with the United States through a one-to-one agreement on the principle of simultaneous actions. That was why the DPRK put forward a formula calling for a simultaneous package solution to the nuclear issue and a 'reward for freeze' proposal as the first phase action," a DPRK Foreign Ministry spokesman told the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).

Washington announced the suspension of heavy oil deliveries to the DPRK in November 2002 after accusing the DPRK of developing an "enriched uranium" program and halted Light Water Reactor (LWR) construction in December 2003.

Pyongyang considered the US moves as a "unilateral and complete" violation of the DPRK-US Agreed Framework adopted in October 1994, said the spokesman.

Under the agreement, the DPRK promised to freeze its nuclear facilities in exchange for US help to build two LWRs and an annual supply of 500,000 tons of heavy oil.

"Frankly speaking, we have never thought that the Bush administration, steeped in hostility toward the DPRK to the marrow of its bone, would bring the LWR construction to a completion," he said.

"The United States is grossly mistaken. The DPRK will certainly settle accounts with the United States which unilaterally pulled out of the Agreed Framework. The LWR issue taught a serious lesson to the DPRK," he said.

High-ranking US officials said recently that there was no prospect for the LWR construction and there could be no concession such as the resumption of the LWR construction.

"There can be no relationship based on confidence with the US administration as it scrapped the Agreed Framework whose core issue is the provision of LWRs, throwing away the document signed by its president," he added.

Source: Xinhua