A spokesperson for the Foreign Ministry of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) issued the following press statement on April 27:

The U.S. once again malignantly slandered the DPRK through the publication of “Country Reports on Human Rights for 2023”.

The DPRK Foreign Ministry resolutely denounces and rejects the U.S. State Department’s publication of “human rights report” which is full of lies, fabrications, prejudice and hostility, and strongly warns the U.S. to stop its illegal interference in the sovereignty and internal affairs of the DPRK.

The U.S. farce of making “human rights report” has nothing to do with ensuring genuine human rights. It is a mere framing of basic data they need for tarnishing the image of other countries incurring its displeasure and for justifying its interference in their internal affairs and its scheme to overthrow their social systems.

If the U.S. State Department regards making “human rights report” as its main duty which can never be overlooked, it will be reasonable to first write a confession frankly admitting the human rights situation in the country and be judged fairly by other countries.

Whenever the U.S. finds fault with other countries using its own “human rights standard”, the international community first examine the horrible human rights situation in the U.S. which is widely recognized as the worst in the world.

Even at this moment, it is the U.S. which is fostering massacres of innocent civilians through overseas military aid of tens of billions of U.S. dollars and it is also the U.S. where the serious human rights violations such as institutional suppression of its people, confrontations between nations, races and religions and all kinds of crimes of violence and cruel treatment of immigrants are rampant.

The recent assertion about the influx of information into the DPRK, made by high-ranking officials of the Biden administration including the “envoy for the human rights issue” of the U.S. State Department at every given opportunity, is a manifestation of an extremely sinister political plot and a dangerous political provocation to undermine the system of the DPRK from within in the long-run.

Now that the U.S. is hell-bent on hostile acts against the DPRK, regarding “human rights” racket and military threat as their main means of aggression, the DPRK will have to take into consideration the resolute and decisive option for defending the sovereignty and security of the state in an all-round way.

There is no limit to the DPRK’s counteraction to defend its social system, sovereignty and national interests.