N Korea accuses US of 'double standards' over test

North Korea accused the United States of "double standards" over weapons testing, state media reported Thursday after an emergency UN Security Council meeting on the issue. Pyongyang fired a new type of submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM) on Tuesday, the latest in a series of tests in recent weeks, prompting the US and Britain to call the diplomatic meeting in New York.

But a spokesperson from the North's foreign ministry said the test was not aimed at the United States and was carried out "purely for the defence of the country"."So there is no need for the US to worry or trouble itself over the testfiring," the spokesperson said in a statement carried by the official KCNA news agency.

The statement added Washington's criticism of the North for "developing and test-firing the same weapon system as the one the US possesses or is developing is a clear expression of double standards"."It only excites our suspicion" about the sincerity of Washington's insistence it has no hostile intent towards the country, it said.

Kim met three times with former president Donald Trump, who boasted of stopping a war but failed to reach a comprehensive agreement on ending North Korea's nuclear programme. The talks process has been largely stalled since the collapse of their Hanoi summit in early 2019.

President Joe Biden has promised to keep seeking diplomacy but with a more low-key approach looking for areas for progress. Earlier this month, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un blamed the United States for tensions, dismissing Washington's assertions that it does not have hostile intentions.

North Korea hit back at U.S. criticism over its test of a submarine-launched ballistic missile this week, saying it was rightfully exercising its rights for self-defense and that the weapon doesn't specifically target the United States. The comments by an unidentified spokesperson of the North's Foreign Ministry on Thursday came as the U.N. Security Council was set to hold an emergency closed-door meeting over the launch at the request of the United States and the United Kingdom.

Tuesday's launch of a new ballistic missile from a submarine was the North's first test of such weaponry in two years and the most significant demonstration of its military might since President Joe Biden took office. Washington condemned the launch, which underscored how the North continues to expand its military capabilities amid a freeze in nuclear diplomacy, and called for Pyongyang to "engage in sustained and substantive dialogue."

In comments published by Pyongyang's official Korean Central News Agency, the North Korean spokesperson said its recent test posed no immediate threat to neighboring countries and that there was no need for Washington to agonize over a weapon that doesn't specifically target the United States.

The spokesperson said Pyongyang is "truly concerned" over what it sees as an "abnormal" reaction by the United States over a rightful exercise of its rights to defense and described Washington's efforts to set up the U.N. Security Council meeting as a "provocative move."

"When doing the recent test-firing, we did not have the U.S. in mind nor aimed at it, but it is the work which had already been planned purely for the defense of the country," the spokesperson said.