N. Korea calls Japan's criticism of its nukes a ‘grave provocation'

April 15 (UPI) -- North Korea on Wednesday accused Japan of a "grave provocation" after Tokyo expressed concern about Pyongyang's nuclear and missile programs in its annual diplomatic report.

Japan's Foreign Ministry said in its 2026 Diplomatic Bluebook that North Korea's weapons programs are a "serious and imminent threat" to Japan and the international community and are "absolutely unacceptable." The report, released last week, reiterated the need for the "complete, verifiable and irreversible dismantlement" of its nuclear arsenal and ballistic missiles.

The policy document also stressed the importance of fully implementing U.N. Security Council resolutions and warned that North Korea's transfer of weapons to Russia violates those measures.

An unnamed official at North Korea's Foreign Ministry called the assessment "a grave provocation encroaching upon the sovereign rights, security interests and development rights of our sacred state."

"At the same time, it fully reveals Japan's deep-rooted hostility and confrontational intention toward the DPRK," the official said in a statement carried by the state-run Korean Central News Agency.

The Democratic People's Republic of Korea is the official name of North Korea.

The statement also dismissed Tokyo's calls for denuclearization as an "anachronistic" demand and accused Japan of attempting to undermine Pyongyang's status as a nuclear weapons state.

Earlier this week, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un oversaw the test-firing of nuclear-capable cruise and anti-ship missiles from a 5,000-ton destroyer that experts believe was built with technical assistance from Moscow.

North Korea has drawn closer to Russia amid Moscow's war in Ukraine, supplying weapons and troops for the conflict. In return, Pyongyang is believed to be receiving economic support and advanced military technology.

The North Korean official described Japan's diplomatic report as "a tricky and confrontational document from A to Z" aimed at justifying Tokyo's push to expand its military capabilities.

Pyongyang frequently accuses Japan of seeking to revive militarism and criticizes its colonial rule of the Korean Peninsula from 1910 to 1945.

Copyright 2026 UPI News Corporation. All Rights Reserved.

This story was originally published April 15, 2026 at 4:54 AM.