The Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) on Tuesday accused the United States of speeding up its modernization of nukes, the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) quoted a newspaper as saying.

The DPRK attacked the U.S. nuclear policy in a commentary carried by the leading official newspaper Rodong Sinmun.

"The U.S. moves for the modernization of nukes are aimed at making a preemptive nuclear attack on other countries and materializing its wild ambition for world supremacy," said the commentary, adding that "a new nuclear arms race is being triggered by the U.S. in the international arena."

"The U.S. is the principal criminal of the present nuclear arms race, the very one who harasses world peace and security," the newspaper added.

The DPRK has been refusing to return to the six-party talks on the nuclear issue of the Korean Peninsula since last October, after the U.S. government imposed financial restrictions on some DPRK companies which it claimed had been involved in counterfeiting and money laundering.

The DPRK has denied the allegations and ruled out participation in a new round of six-party talks until the sanctions are lifted.

Source: Xinhua