It said that America was trying to mastermind a confrontation between North and South Korea.

The following is the text of a statement published in English by the official KCNA news agency:

There is an increasing danger of a nuclear war on the Korean Peninsula due to the US criminal policy towards the DPRK [Democratic People's Republic of Korea].

The US is deliberately spreading a false rumour about the DPRK's ''nuclear issue'' in particular, in a bid to vitiate the atmosphere of inter-Korean reconciliation and unity and foster confrontation among Koreans.

The ''nuclear issue'' is a product of the US strategy to dominate the world... it is working hard to bring the holocaust of nuclear war to the Korean nation

The US has stood in the way of Korean reunification for more than half a century after occupying South Korea by force.

It is impossible to carry out the urgent task of the nation to avert a war and defend peace on the Korean Peninsula unless the moves of the US to perpetuate Korean division and sow the seeds of discord among the Koreans are thoroughly frustrated.

Reconciliation

An atmosphere of reconciliation, unity and reunification between the North and the South is now running higher than ever before in the wake of the publication of the historic 15 June North-South joint declaration.

Therefore there is neither a reason nor conditions for the Koreans to stand in confrontation, escalate the tensions and harass peace on the Korean Peninsula.

The joint New Year editorial of newspapers Rodong Sinmun, Josoninmingun and Chongnyonjonwi issued on the occasion of the New Year, 2003, said that there exists only confrontation between the Korean nation in the North and the South and the US at present.

'US racket'

The ''nuclear issue'' that renders the situation on the Korean Peninsula strained, is a product of the US strategy to dominate the world whereby it is working hard to bring the holocaust of nuclear war to the Korean nation, calling for a pre-emptive nuclear strike after deploying lots of nuclear weapons in and around South Korea.

All Koreans should remain vigilant against the US imperialists' reckless moves for a war and deal deadly blows to the Yankees

It is plain to everyone that if a nuclear war breaks out in Korea it will bring catastrophic disasters to the Koreans in both parts of Korea.

They should, therefore, pool their efforts and condemn and frustrate the US nuclear policy for aggression and its racket of a nuclear threat so as to find a fundamental solution to the nuclear issue.

All the Koreans in the North and the South and abroad should have a correct understanding of the structure of confrontation on the Korean Peninsula, remain vigilant against the US imperialists' reckless moves for a war and deal deadly blows to the Yankees by their concerted efforts.

BBC Monitoring, based in Caversham in southern England, selects and translates information from radio, television, press, news agencies and the Internet from 150 countries in more than 70 languages.