NKorea rejects offer of talks on Kaesong complex

North Korea's state-run broadcaster says the government calls South Korea's offer of dialogue a "crafty trick". Photo: BBC

North Korea has rejected an offer from South Korea to hold talks on the future of the joint Kaesong industrial complex amid continued tensions.

Pyongyang called the offer an "empty, meaningless" act aimed at disguising invasion plans, state media said.

On Monday, North Korea is marked the birth of national founder Kim Il-sung.

Such occasions traditionally see shows of military strength and this year it is thought the date could be used for a missile launch.

At this time last year, North Korea launched a rocket with the stated aim of putting a satellite into orbit to mark the 100th anniversary of Kim Il-sung's birth. The rocket broke up shortly after take-off.

The UN Security Council condemned the launch, which many outside the country saw the launch as an illegal test of long-range missile technology.

North Korea has recently threatened attacks against South Korea and the US, sparking alarm in the region.

It has also withdrawn North Korean workers from the Kaesong industrial complex - a rare joint Korean enterprise where South Korean companies employed Northerners.

Fiery rhetoric

On Sunday US Secretary of State John Kerry has called on North Korea's leaders to "come to the table in a responsible way" to end regional tensions, warning it risked further isolation if its threats continued.

He also reaffirmed the US commitment to defend its allies, including Japan.

Speculation has been building that the North is preparing a missile launch, following reports that it has moved at least two Musudan ballistic missiles to its east coast.

Japan is within range of these rockets and has been taking precautions, including setting up batteries of US-made Patriot anti-missile systems around the capital and sending two warships to the Sea of Japan, with orders to shoot down any missiles fired towards the Japanese islands.

At a joint news conference with Japanese Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida, Kerry stressed that Seoul, Beijing, Tokyo and Washington had "committed to take action together" and to making the goal of denuclearisation of the Korean peninsula "a reality".

Washington and Tokyo have a security alliance dating back to the 1950s, under which Washington is bound to protect Japan if it is attacked.

North Korea habitually issues fiery statements denouncing the US and South Korea, but the rhetoric has grown increasingly aggressive since the UN imposed a fresh round of sanctions in March.

The sanctions punished Pyongyang for carrying out a banned test of a ballistic missile and conducting its third test of a nuclear device in February.

Pyongyang has also been angered by joint military manoeuvres by the US and South Korea, which it says are preparations for war.

It has responded by vowing to restart an inactive nuclear reactor, shut an emergency military hotline to the South and by urging countries to withdraw their diplomatic staff, saying it cannot now guarantee their safety.

Some estimates suggest that the Musudan missiles which North Korea has moved to its east coast could travel 4,000km (2,500 miles).

That would put US bases on the Pacific island of Guam within range, although the exact threat is unclear as it is not believed that the Musudan has been tested before.

Kerry has stressed that it would be a "huge mistake" for the North to go ahead with a launch, saying it would further isolate North Korea and that the people of the country are in need of food, not missiles.