SEOUL, May 18. /TASS/. The United States’ efforts to combat terrorism are only leading to a rise in the terrorist threat, Kwon Jong Gun, head of the North Korean Foreign Ministry's North America Department, said.

Earlier, the US decided to keep North Korea on the list of countries Washington says are "not cooperating fully" in its fight against terrorism.

"It is an axiom that as the US steps up its ‘counterterrorism efforts,’ the global terrorist threat is not declining but on the contrary, the vicious circle of terrorism and revenge is expanding and various terrorist groups are emerging," the North Korean diplomat said, commenting on the US decision. According to the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), he stressed that Pyongyang consistently pursued a policy of combating all forms of terrorism threatening global peace.

According to the diplomat, Pyongyang and Washington are "in completely hostile relations," so "there are no areas where cooperation could be discussed." He recommended that instead of putting "terrorist" labels on countries, the US should focus "on reining in its junior ally in the Middle East, obsessed with state terror."

On May 15, US Department of State officials announced that Cuba had been removed from the list of countries that are not fully cooperating with the US on counterterrorism efforts. However, Venezuela, Iran, North Korea and Syria remained on the list, which is different from that of state sponsors of terrorism, Washington officials added.