DPRK slams Trump UN speech as 'sound of dog barking'

The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea’s (DPRK) Foreign Minister Ri Yong Ho Wednesday issued a sharp rebuke of US President Donald Trump’s address to the UN, saying Trump’s remarks equated with "the sound of a dog barking."

Trump in his UN speech said that the US might be forced to "totally destroy" the DPRK

"There is a saying that goes: 'Even when dogs bark, the parade goes on'," Ri told reporters in front of a hotel near the UN headquarters in New York.

"If he was thinking he could scare us with the sound of a dog barking, that's really a dog dream," Ri added. Yonhap explained that in Korean, a dog dream means an absurd dream with little sense.

When asked to comment on "rocket man", Trump’s new call to the DPRK’s leader Kim Jong Un, Ri said, "I feel sorry for his aides".

The DPRK's Foreign Minister Ri Yong Ho walks as he exits after a courtesy call with Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte for the 50th ASEAN Foreign Ministers’ Meeting at the Philippine International Convention Center in Pasay city, metro Manila, Philippines August 8, 2017. /Reuters Photo

Ri’s remarks were the first official response from the DPRK after Trump issued his serious warning to Pyongyang in his speech at the UN General Assembly on Tuesday.

Trump’s address came after months of escalating tensions on the Korean Peninsula. The DPRK conducted its sixth nuclear test on September 3 and launched a series of ballistic missiles this year including intercontinental ballistic missiles that appeared to bring the US into range.

The UN last week adopted new sanctions against Pyongyang, capping its oil imports for the first time.

The DPRK's foreign minister is scheduled to address UN on Friday and will also meet the UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Saturday.

Trump’s maiden speech also drew varying reactions from other countries.

US President Donald Trump addresses the 72nd Annual UN General Assembly in New York on September 19, 2017. /AFP Photo‍

Spokesman of Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs Lu Kang on Wednesday said UN resolutions make it clear that the Korean Peninsula issue should be resolved through peaceful and diplomatic means.

Lu has reiterated that China hopes all parties will exercise restraint when they fully and comprehensively implement the UN resolutions on the DPRK.

For the South Korean side, President Mon Jae-in said Trump’s warning to the DPRK had been "firm and specific".

Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe agreed with Trump and told the UN that dialogue with the DPRK would not work.

(CGTN)