N. Korea accuses US of maintaining policy of aggression

North Korea on Sunday accused the US of maintaining a policy of aggression against it, a local media report said.

In the report, the Rodong Sinmun, the official daily of North Korea, called the US policy towards Pyongyang "brigandish and rogue" and said Washington had no "respect for sovereignty and the idea of equality".

"The US is working hard to justify its aggression moves as one of preserving peace," added the report.

The report comes the same day as US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson concludes his Asia tour, during which he also visited Tokyo and Seoul and focused on developing a new strategy to counter North Korea, Efe news reported.

Following a meeting on Saturday with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Beijing, Tillerson pledged to do everything possible to prevent a military conflict on the Korean peninsula at a time of rising tensions in the region.

The US Secretary of State also held a meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping on Sunday, in which the two promised to build a relationship of cooperation favourable for both countries.

Tillerson's tour of Asia comes at a time of escalating tensions on the Korean peninsula due to the latest weapons test by North Korea on March 6, when the army fired four medium-range missiles into waters close to Japan.

The test was in response to ongoing annual military exercises by Seoul and Washington in South Korea, which Pyongyang considers a provocation and a rehearsal for invading its territory.

--IANS

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