North Korea threatened Thursday that it will turn Japan into a ``nuclear sea of fire’’ if the U.S. attacks it with nuclear weapons.
``If the U.S. ignites a nuclear wear, the U.S. military bases in Japan would serve as a detonating fuse to turn Japan into a nuclear sea of fire,’’ North Korea’s main newspaper Rodong Sinmun said.

The article, carried by the North’s Korean Central News Agency, claimed that the danger of a nuclear war in Northeast Asia keeps increasing as a result of Washington’s push to realign its military presence in this part of the world. About 70,000 U.S. troops are stationed in Japan.

``The U.S. selection of Japan as the most important vantage point in implementing its Korean and Asian military strategy is designed to put into practice its long-range attack strategy,’’ it said.