International Desk

North Korea has slammed the United States for "political and military provocations" over the visit of a US Navy aircraft carrier to the South Korean port of Busan.

The statement by Kim Yo Jong, the powerful sister of North Korea's ruler Kim Jong Un, was published Tuesday by the state-owned Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).

"As soon as its new administration appeared this year, the US has stepped up the political and military provocations against the DPRK, 'carrying forward' the former administration's hostile policy," her statement read.

DPRK is the acronym for the North's formal name, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.

The USS Carl Vinson, the flagship of a carrier strike group, arrived in Busan for a scheduled port visit on Sunday, the US Navy said in a statement.

"The visit to Busan exemplifies the US commitment to the region, further enhancing relationships with ROK leaders and the local population," the US Navy said, using the acronym for the South's formal name.

Military cooperation between Seoul and Washington regularly invites condemnation from Pyongyang, where the government sees such moves as preparation for an invasion, and often carries out missile tests in response.

"The US vicious moves for confrontation with the DPRK have been intensified in March with the appearance of Carl Vinson in the Korean peninsula," said Kim Yo Jong.

South Korea's ministry of defense said that Kim's statement is "nothing more than an excuse aimed at justifying its nuclear missile development and creating a pretext for provocations."

"North Korea's nuclear ambitions can never be tolerated, and the only path to its survival is to abandon its obsession and delusions about nuclear weapons," said the ministry said in a statement.

Relations between Pyongyang and Seoul have been at one of their lowest points in years, with the North launching a flurry of ballistic missiles last year in violation of UN sanctions.

Last week, North Korea carried out a test-launch of strategic cruise missiles in the Yellow Sea, in a drill Pyongyang said was aimed at showing off its "counterattack" capabilities.

Joint South Korea-US "Freedom Shield" military exercises are set to begin this month.

The two Koreas remain technically at war since the 1950-1953 conflict ended in an armistice, not a peace treaty.

Kim Yo Jong's missive ended with what appeared to be a threat to "renew its records" in the testing of nuclear-capable missiles and other such technology.

"If the US continues to renew its records in the anti-DPRK military demonstration, the DPRK will be naturally compelled to renew its records in the exercise of strategic deterrence," she said.

She said the United States and its allies were the "root cause of escalating tension" in the region, and that the North "bitterly condemns the reckless visible actions and muscle-flexing" of Washington.