S.Korean president's US trip 'prelude to war': Pyongyang

Seoul, May 10 (IANS/RIA Novosti) South Korean President Park Geun-hye's recent visit to the United States is a "prelude to war", North Korea has said.

"It is a curtain-raiser to a dangerous war to invade," South Korea's Yonhap news agency quoted a North Korean official as saying.

President Park took office in February, and the visit to the US was her first official foreign trip as president.

North Korea was a key point on the agenda for her meetings with US President Barack Obama, given the worrying escalation of tensions on the Korean peninsula following the isolated state's third nuclear test in February.

After meeting Park, Obama said: "The days when North Korea could create a crisis and elicit concessions, those days are over."

Park voiced South Korea's position that North Korea had "no choice but to change".

Earlier this week, reports emerged that two North Korean mid-range missiles, reportedly prepared for launch last month have been withdrawn from their coastal positions.

This, combined with reports that Pyongyang has lifted its highest combat alert for its armed forces, led to media speculation that a change in mood may be afoot in North Korea.

--IANS/RIA Novosti

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