North Korea blames US for 'grave terrorist' act against Cuban embassy

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un speaks during the 9th Session of the 14th Supreme People's Assembly of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, in Pyongyang, North Korea, in this picture obtained by Reuters on September 28 2023.
Image: CNA via REUTERS

North Korea accused the US on Sunday of letting a “terrorist” act against Cuba take place on US soil, saying a recent attack against the Cuban embassy in Washington was the result of “despicable anti-Cuban” US intentions.

The US has neglected to ensure the safety of the Cuban mission and was only keen to put countries it dislikes, such as Cuba, on its list of state sponsors of terrorism, a spokesperson for North Korea's foreign ministry said.

Along with Cuba, North Korea, Syria and Iran are on the US state department list.

An assailant attacked the embassy on September 24 with two Molotov cocktails. No one was hurt and there was no significant damage.

The incident was “a grave terrorist attack”, the North Korean spokesperson said, adding there was a pattern as it followed a 2020 incident at the same embassy in which someone fired a rifle at the building.

“This goes to prove that the above-said incidents were committed evidently at the tacit connivance of the US administration,” the unnamed spokesperson said in a statement carried by the official KCNA news agency.

US authorities arrested and indicted a man soon after the 2020 shooting.

The US should “acknowledge the blame for not only the recent incident but also all the past terrorist cases and probe their truth to show its sincerity”, rather than focusing on naming countries as state sponsors of terrorism, he said.

White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan said the US strongly condemned the attack and that US law enforcement authorities would investigate. No one was in custody as the investigation continued, the Secret Service has said.

The embassy reopened in 2015 when Cuba and the US restored diplomatic ties. Havana has said it is unreasonable for Washington to keep Cuba on its terrorism list and maintain a Cold War-era economic embargo.