North Korea’s state-run television has broadcast a rare statement issued directly by regime leader Kim Jong-un against the United States.

Ri Chun-hee, the main anchor for the North's Korean Central Television(KCTV), read the statement during a regular news program on Friday, apparently a day after it was issued.

The North’s official Rodong Sinmun newspaper also covered the front page of Friday’s edition with Kim's statement along with a photo of the leader reading it aloud at a Workers' Party Central Commission in Pyongyang on Thursday.

It is the first time Kim has personally issued a statement, aside from an annual New Year’s address. It is known that former North Korean leaders, Kim Il-sung and Kim Jung-il, never even issued such a special public statement.

The statement, in which Kim said he would consider the highest level of strong countermeasures against the U.S., is being viewed as a direct response to U.S. President Donald Trump’s strong criticism against him and North Korea at the UN General Assembly on Tuesday. 

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