N Korea warns US could ‘pay dearly’ for rights criticism

North Korea yesterday warned Washington would only aggravate tensions and "pay dearly" for criticising Pyongyang over human rights, with nuclear negotiations between the two deadlocked. Criticising Pyongyang's human rights record would only aggravate the "already tense situation" on the Korean peninsula, "like pouring oil over burning fire", a North Korean foreign ministry spokesperson said, according to the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA). The statement was in response to concern expressed by a US state department official over North Korea's human rights situation, KCNA said.