North Korea said Monday it could not attend the second phase of the fourth-round six-party talks formerly scheduled for this week, but indicated it might return to the talks in mid-September.

A Foreign Ministry spokesperson said the decision was made because of the hostile and insulting behavior of the US.

"No sooner had the talks gone into recess than the US began the large-scale war exercises 'Ulji Focus Lens-05' with South Korea targeted against North Korea, and appointed a presidential envoy for the human rights issue of North Korea. These have thus eliminated all possibilities of holding the second phase of the talks in the week beginning August 29," said the spokesperson.

He said it was "unimaginable" for North Korea to sit at the negotiating table with the US at a time when the powder-reeking war exercises targeted against it are under way.

"What the US has done has seriously insulted its dialogue partner and broke faith with North Korea," the spokesperson stressed.

He said North Korea, through the New York contact channel in the UN headquarters, had notified the US of its stand.

"The US expressed understanding of this view," he said.

But he also said that the talks might be resumed in mid-September when the atmosphere "chilled."

"It is the stand of North Korea to open the second phase of the fourth-round six-party talks in the week beginning September 12 when the war exercises have probably worn down a bit," the spokesperson said.

The fourth round of six-party talks began July 26 in Beijing and adjourned on August 7. The six parties had formerly agreed to resume the second phase of the talks this week.

Also on Monday, North Korea's official news agency KCNA accused the US of sabotaging the atmosphere of the resumption of the talks.

The US chief executive appointed an "envoy for the human rights issue of North Korea" and set in motion the reactionary Radio FreeAsia to launch into a massive distorted propaganda about the lot of "defectors from the North," KCNA said in a commentary.

"We swear that we regard this as an absurd and foolish attempt to overthrow the system of North Korea at any cost by adding the human rights racket to the nuclear issue," the commentary said.

"The six-party talks were delayed a little more than one year as the US demolished the very foundation of the talks by disregarding and disrespecting its dialogue partner. The US is now repeating this folly. This is tantamount to urging North Korea to reconsider its approach to the talks," it added.

(Xinhua News Agency August 30, 2005)