North Korea blasts U.S. for sanctions over Sony attack

The Associated Press Posted: Jan 04, 2015 10:30 AM ET Last Updated: Jan 04, 2015 10:30 AM ET

North Korea on Sunday criticized the United States for slapping sanctions on Pyongyang officials and organizations for a cyberattack on Sony Pictures — the latest fallout from a Hollywood movie depicting the fictional assassination of North Korea's leader.

An unnamed spokesman for North Korea's Foreign Ministry, in rhetoric that closely mirrors past statements, denied any role in the breach of tens of thousands of confidential Sony emails and business files and accused the United States of "groundlessly" stirring up hostility toward Pyongyang. The spokesman said the new sanctions would not weaken the country's 1.2-million-strong military.

The spokesman told the North's official media mouthpiece, the Korean Central News Agency, that the sanctions show America's "inveterate repugnancy and hostility toward the DPRK," referring to the North's official name, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.

"The policy persistently pursued by the U.S. to stifle the DPRK, groundlessly stirring up bad blood toward it, would only harden its will and resolution to defend the sovereignty of the country," the spokesman said.

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