By Rachel Lee

North Korea has again hit out at a U.S. suggestion of a naval blockade, saying any such action would be considered a declaration of war.

Pyongyang said such a move would be a "wanton violation of the country's sovereignty and dignity" that would be considered a declaration of war, the state-run Rodong Shinmun reported Sunday.

"Once we discover a small movement to implement the naval blockade plan, there should follow our prompt, brutal and self-defensive response against the movement," the newspaper said.

North Korea said the U.S. and its followers should stop this "useless" plan and think carefully about the "catastrophic" outcome.

U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson recently mentioned the "right to interdict maritime traffic transporting goods" to and from the North, after its Nov. 29 test of an intercontinental ballistic missile.

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The North's state-run Korea Central News Agency reported that the U.S. was trying to strangle the North Korean economy in peace time, and this was part of Washington's plan to increase political and economic pressure on the North.

The idea of a blockade has caused confusion within the government.

Defense Minister Song Young-moo told the National Assembly, Dec. 1, that South Korea might consider a naval blockade if such a proposal was made.

The presidential office dismissed the minister's remark as a "personal view."

Cheong Wa Dae said Presidents Moon Jae-in and Donald Trump did not discuss a naval blockade against North Korea during their phone call last month.

"The issue of a naval blockade was never discussed during their phone conversation," a Cheong Wa Dae official told reporters. He also said they did not discuss any military steps against the North.

After a flurry of missile tests by Pyongyang this year, the international community has imposed an increasing number of sanctions on the North in a bid to quell the growing tension on the Korean peninsula.

However, North Korea launched an apparent new intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) Nov. 29. The missile reached an altitude of about 4,500 kilometers and traveled 960 kilometers before falling into the East Sea inside Japan's Exclusive Economic Zone.

The missile launch, which broke a 75-day lull in the North's provocations, showed the country has no plans to give up its nuclear and missile programs, drawing strong condemnation from South Korea and the international community.