North Korean state media issued a scathing commentary on Tuesday criticizing a recent op-ed by top U.S. officials, accusing them of pursuing a “hostile policy” in Asia that has forced the DPRK to bolster its nuclear deterrent. 

Notably, the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) article contrasted sharply with Pyongyang’s dismissive stance on the impact of the upcoming U.S. elections just a few weeks earlier, suggesting the DPRK is paying closer attention to U.S. politics than they might admit.

In the Washington Post op-edpublished last week, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and National Security Adviser