Pyongyang, December 17 (KCNA) -- A spokesman for the Ministry of National Defence of the DPRK on Sunday made public the following statement titled "The hostile forces' any attempt to use nuke will face a preemptive and deadly counteraction":

The U.S. and the military gangsters of the Republic of Korea, who have aggravated the situation in the Korean peninsula with their reckless military provocations such as deployment of nuclear strike means and large-scale joint military drills throughout this year, are going to finish the end of the year with a preview of a nuclear war.

The U.S. and ROK warmongers held the second meeting of the "Nuclear Consultative Group (NCG)" in Washington on Dec. 15. They opened to the public that they would complete the "guidelines on nuclear strategic plan and its operation" and the establishment of "extended deterrence system" by the middle of next year and conduct a nuclear operation drill during the large-scale joint military exercises Ulji Freedom Shield in August of next year.

This is an open declaration on nuclear confrontation to make the use of nuclear weapons against the DPRK a fait accompli in case of emergency and examine the operational procedures for its implementation in an atmosphere of real war.

The revolutionary armed forces of the DPRK strongly denounce the reckless military moves of the U.S. and the military gangsters of the ROK who are maximizing the tension in and around the Korean peninsula with hostile and provocative acts against the DPRK until the end of the year.

Clear is the intention of the U.S. which dispatched the nuclear-powered submarine Missouri to the Korean peninsula as soon as it hatched a dangerous plot for a nuclear war in Washington.

Such critical situation pressurizes our armed forces to opt for more offensive countermeasure.

The unstable political and military situation this year, which started with the entry of the U.S. Air Force B-1B strategic bomber in January and has ended with the visit of a nuclear-powered submarine of the U.S. Navy in December, clearly shows it is none other than the U.S. and its vassal forces that unilaterally escalate the military tension in the Korean peninsula by words or deeds.

Every moment, the crisis of nuclear conflict in the Korean peninsula is turning into the issue of a point of time, not the issue of possibility as the adventurous military doctrine of the U.S. presupposing the use of nuclear strike means has developed into a more dangerous way.

The security environment on the Korean peninsula has not yet been stabilized due to the reckless military threat of the U.S. and the ROK.

The DPRK will never overlook the provocative act of the U.S. which is introducing nuclear strategic means into the Korean peninsula again with the approaching of the year-end and the beginning of the new year, going against the aspiration and desire of the regional and international community for detente, peace and stability.

The armed forces of the DPRK will thoroughly neutralize the U.S. and its vassal forces' attempt to ignite a nuclear war and thus reliably ensure peace and security in the Korean peninsula and the region and faithfully fulfill their constitutional duty to defend the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the country and the rights and interests of its people.

The hostile forces' any attempt to use armed forces against the DPRK will face a preemptive and deadly counteraction. -0-

www.kcna.kp (Juche112.12.17.)