North Korea Thursday rejected South Korean bid to raise the former's nuclear program during their upcoming bilateral talks stating that the matter had absolutely nothing to do with inter-Korean relations.
Referring to the South's insistence on discussing the nuclear issue as a pre-condition for extending financial aid, "Rodong Sinmun," mouthpiece of North Korea's Workers' Party, said it was merely "a ploy to whip up a wanton campaign against the North.
"As we have made clear repeatedly, the nuclear issue has nothing to do with inter-Korean relations," Sinmun said in its editorial released through the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).
According to the North, the nuclear weapons were developed as a deterrent against foreign threats-- an apparent reference to Washington-- and hence South Korea should keep off the issue.
Sinmun also ridiculed South Korean Unification Minister Hyun In-taek for his remarks regarding a "thaw" witnessed in inter-korean ties saying that he had completely misread the situation. "Hyun is talking rubbish," the paper said.
North Korea on Wednesday had warned the South against the joint military exercise with the United States scheduled for March 8-18 as it could undermine inter-Korean ties.
Bilateral ties between the two Koreas deteriorated after conservative Lee Myung-bak was elected South Korea's President in early 2008.
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