North Korea slams new South-US pact against nuclear attack

North's Committee for Peaceful Reunification of Korea baulked at the moves, describing them as "grave provocations"

SEOUL: North Korea on Monday lashed out at a new military pact between the South and the US aimed at guarding against potential nuclear attacks and threatened a "final destruction".     

Seoul and Washington last week signed a new joint strategy to counter the growing threat of a North Korean nuclear or chemical weapons attack.

Defence chiefs of the two allies said the new "strategic framework" for dealing with "key North Korean nuclear threat scenarios" would greatly enhance their deterrence capacity in the wake of the North's third atomic test in February.

The two nations along with Japan are also to stage a massive joint naval drill near the Korean peninsula from Tuesday to Thursday involving the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS George Washington.

The North's Committee for Peaceful Reunification of Korea (CPK) baulked at the latest moves, describing them as "grave provocations" that would push the peninsula to the "brink of nuclear war".