North Korea said Tuesday that it would never waive its right to conduct peaceful nuclear activities.

"At the first phase of the fourth-round six-party talks, the US was adamant in insisting that North Korea totally give up all its nuclear activities including the use of nuclear energy for a peaceful purpose. North Korea can neither make any compromise nor accept this unilateral and high-handed demand," the Rodong Sinmun daily said in a commentary.

The commentary stressed that North Korea's peaceful nuclear activities constitute a key economic sector that should be further developed as the economy makes progress and the material and cultural demand of the people increases.

"The Koreans regard peaceful nuclear activities as one of the independent rights of the country. They are also an exercise of a legitimate right enshrined in international law," it said.

The commentary said all the other parties to the six-party talks -- Russia, China, Japan, the US and South Korea -- produce and use nuclear energies.

"North Korea is neither a war criminal state nor a defeated state. For what reason should it abandon its right to peaceful nuclear activities?" it asked.

The commentary said that North Korea had tightened its belt for decades to build the nuclear power facilities. "It is unimaginable for the North to dismantle its nuclear power industry built with so much effort, without getting any compensation for the loss of nuclear energy," it added.

"If the US tries to have its unreasonable demand, the situation will only get further complicated," the commentary warned.

North Korea announced on August 29 that it would postpone the second phase of the fourth-round six-party talks to mid-September, citing the US and South Korea's staging of the large-scale war exercises dubbed "Ulji Focus Lens-05" and the US appointment of a "presidential envoy for the human rights issue of North Korea."

(Xinhua News Agency September 7, 2005)