North Korea rejects US disarmament deal

Pyongyang turns down non-aggression pact in exchange for denuclearization, condemns American, South Korean provocation

By AP 12 October 2013, 11:14 am Edit

In this Sunday, April 15, 2012 file photo, what appears to be a new missile is carried during a mass military parade at the Kim Il Sung Square in Pyongyang, North Korea, to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the country's founding father Kim Il Sung. (photo credit: AP/Ng Han Guan, File)

SEOUL, South Korea — North Korea refused to sign a non-aggression pact that U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry offered last week on condition of denuclearization.

In a statement carried by the North’s official state media on Saturday, the National Defence Commission spokesman said the U.S. should stop sanctions meant to punish its February nuclear test and provocations including military exercises on the Korean Peninsula.

Earlier this week, North Korea criticized joint two-day naval drills among the U.S., South Korea and Japan as preparations for attacking the North. The allies said these drills were defensive in nature.

During his trip to Japan, Kerry said the door for negotiation with North Korea is open if it abandons nuclear weapons and complies with international demands.

The North’s statement came as the mother of an American held in North Korea visited her son for the first time in his 11-month detention.