Kremlin warns of consequences as North Korea stand-off heats up

Russian government spokesman Dmitry Peskov on Tuesday warned that the strong rhetoric and heightened tensions between the United States and North Korea could lead to extremely dangerous consequences, Reuters reported.  

His remarks come after President Trump threatened North Korea’s destruction Saturday, the latest remark in a series of hostile comments and responses that have been hurled back and forth between the two countries.

“Just heard Foreign Minister of North Korea speak at U.N. If he echoes thoughts of Little Rocket Man, they won’t be around much longer!” Trump tweeted after North Korea’s foreign minister reportedly claimed that the president’s first address to the United Nations General Assembly last week, as well as his related tweets, constituted a “declaration of war.”

{mosads}During the speech, Trump said the U.S. will “have no choice but to totally destroy North Korea” if it continues to threaten the U.S. or its allies.

White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders on Monday dismissed the minister’s “absurd” claim that the Trump administration made a declaration of war.

“We’ve not declared war on North Korea, and frankly the suggestion of that is absurd,” Sanders said during a press briefing.

In recent weeks, Trump has stepped up his rhetoric against North Korea and leader Kim Jong Un, whom he’s dubbed “Little Rocket Man.”

The high-stakes war of words comes after North Korea conducted a series of missile and nuclear tests that display its progress toward developing a nuclear missile capable of hitting the United States.