North Korea rejects call to halt nuclear tests

Sept 24 (Reuters) - North ‌Korea's foreign ​ministry ​on Thursday rejected an international statement urging it to halt nuclear tests, with a ‌spokesperson calling it "a grave political provocation against ⁠our state" by "hostile forces".

A meeting of ministers from the Friends ‌of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban ‌Treaty — a grouping of Australia, Canada, Finland, Germany, Japan and the Netherlands — said any new nuclear ​test by North Korea would be irresponsible and unacceptable.

The meeting in New York on Tuesday urged ⁠Pyongyang to fully comply with all relevant United Nations Security Council ​resolutions.

The spokesperson for North Korea's foreign ministry described the country as a responsible nuclear-armed ​state, in a statement carried ‌by state media KCNA.

In another statement carried by KCNA earlier in the day, ⁠North Korea's foreign minister Choe Son Hui said Pyongyang's nuclear weapons status is irreversible.

Choe was responding to a ⁠separate meeting on the sidelines of the United Nations General ​Assembly this week between the United States, South Korea and Japan at which they reaffirmed their commitment to the complete ‌denuclearisation of North Korea.

The Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty, agreed in 1996, bans "any nuclear weapon ‌test explosion or any other nuclear explosion" anywhere ⁠in the world, with ‌the goal of ​reducing and ultimately eliminating nuclear weapons.

(Reporting by Hyunsu Yim in Barcelona; Editing by Andrew ‌Heavens)

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