'Absurd': US on North Korea's allegations of Trump declaring war

Reuters

Washington, SeoulUpdated: Sep 26, 2017, 06:29 AM IST

North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un has called Trump 'mentally deranged' and warned that 'his threats have convinced me, rather than frightening or stopping me, that the path I chose is correct and that it is the one I have to follow to the last. Photograph:(Reuters)

Story highlights

North Korea has been moving airplanes and boosting defences on its east coast after the United States dispatched B-1B bombers to the Korean peninsula over the weekend, South Korea said

North Korea has been moving airplanes and boosting defences on its east coast after the United States dispatched B-1B bombers to the Korean peninsula over the weekend, South Korea's Yonhap News Agency reported on Tuesday, citing the country's spy agency.

The United States seemed to have disclosed the flight route of the bombers intentionally because North Korea seemed to be unaware, the report said.

South Korea's National Intelligence Service was unable to confirm the report immediately.

Earlier, North Korea's foreign minister said on Monday that US President Donald Trump had declared war on North Korea and that Pyongyang reserved the right to take countermeasures, including shooting down US bombers even if they are not in its airspace.

The North Korean foreign minister's statement that the United States has declared war on Pyongyang is "absurd," the White House said on Monday.

"We've not declared war on North Korea. Frankly, the suggestion of that is absurd," White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders told reporters.