N Korea threatens to strengthen deterrent against US

A North Korean foreign ministry spokesman condemned the recent US legislation of a human rights law on North Korea as part of the US policy to bring down the communist regime.

Stalinist North Korea has been locked in a standoff with the United States and its allies for years over its nuclear weapons drive. Negotia-tions are deadlocked.

"If the United States... pursues its hostile policy to isolate and stifle (North Korea) under the pretext of the 'nuclear issue' and 'human rights issue'... the latter will react to it by further increasing its self-defensive deterrent force," the spokesman said in a statement carried by the official Korean Central News Agency.

"It is deplorable for the US to style itself an international 'judge of human rights,' unaware of its position. By nature the US is the worst human rights graveyard in the world."

The United States passed a law in October to "help promote human rights and freedom" in North Korea, according to a White House statement at the time. Pyongyang said the legislation aimed to topple the communist leadership.

Washington denies seeking to bring down the reclusive Pyongyang regime.

North Korea has been under growing pressure to return to multilateral negotiations on curbing its nuclear weapons drive.

The two Koreas, China, Japan, Russia and the United States have held three rounds of talks aimed at ending North Korea's nuclear ambitions since the standoff erupted in October 2002.

North Korea boycotted a fourth round of the talks scheduled for Beijing in September, citing what it called the hostile US policy and other issues.