North Korea Wednesday blamed the United States for the deadlock in a nuclear disarmament agreement, saying Washington has carried out "zero percent" of its side of the deal.
North Korea will not hurry in implementing the six-nation deal, said Rodong Shinmun, newspaper of the ruling communist Workers' Party.
In a commentary it accused Washington of bad faith, especially the failure to start removing the North from a list of state sponsors of terrorism.
Pyongyang would take "ultra hawkish" countermeasures unless Washington abandons its hardline policy, it warned without elaborating in the commentary carried by the Korean Central News Agency.
North Korea last year signed the breakthrough deal to abandon its nuclear weapons in exchange for badly needed aid and major security and diplomatic benefits.
But the process is at an impasse while awaiting a North Korean declaration of all its nuclear programmes, which was promised by the end of last year.
Pyongyang has said it submitted a full list in November. But the US insists it is still waiting for a complete declaration, including a full account of a suspected covert uranium enrichment programme and any proliferation moves.
The commentary also noted that the North has received only part of the fuel oil or equivalent energy aid promised in return for denuclearisation.
"Reality is like this. For what reason should we hurry up while the principle of action for action is not kept?" it said.
The commentary also denied suggestions that the North is dragging its feet while awaiting a new US president.
"We don't care as to who will become the next US president. It's ridiculous and a fable that US hardline conservative forces mislead public opinion to look as if we anticipate something from the next US president," the paper said.
But it cautioned that "everything will come to nothing" if the next US administration adopts a tough policy.
US State Department deputy spokesman Tom Casey said Tuesday that Washington is hopeful that North Korea will hand over a complete declaration in "the not too distant future."
He said US negotiator Christopher Hill had some good meetings recently with his Chinese partners in the six-party talks which also group the two Koreas, Russia and Japan.
Hill said in Hanoi Monday he hoped the talks could resume this month.
