'We will shoot down US planes' North Korea's foreign minister Ri Yong-ho declares

The North Korean foreign minister has accused the US of war mongering as he threatened that the rogue state would shoot down American bombers.

Ri Yong Ho told reporters in New York on Monday (25 September) that it was the US who had declared war on North Korea with statements made by Donald Trump, such as his tweet that the North Korean leadership would not "be around much longer" if they continued their rhetoric.

"The whole world should clearly remember it was the US who first declared war on our country," Ri said.

"Since the United States declared war on our country, we will have every right to make countermeasures, including the right to shoot down United States strategic bombers even when they are not inside the airspace border of our country," he added.

Meanwhile the Pentagon rejected North Korea's rhetoric, saying that the US president Donald Trump, would be "provided with options to deal with Pyongyang".

The Pentagon spokesman Colonel Robert Manning responded by saying that if North Korea did not stop its provocative actions, it will make sure the "President is provided with options to deal with Pyongyang".

White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said: "We have not declared war against North Korea and frankly the suggestion of that is absurd".

On Saturday (23 September) Ri described the US president as a "mentally deranged person full of megalomania" on a "suicide mission".

Meanwhile, the Chinese ambassador to the UN Liu Jieyi said: "We want things to calm down. It's getting too dangerous and it's in nobody's interest," Reuters reported.

Stéphane Dujarric, a spokesman for UN Secretary General António Guterres, said: "Fiery talk can lead to fatal misunderstandings. The only solution for this is a political solution."