SEOUL South Korea (AFP) — North Korea denounced on Saturday a joint statement by South Korea and the European Union (EU) that condemned Pyongyang's military ties with Russia throughout the Ukraine war.

The statement, adopted on Wednesday during South Korean President Lee Jae Myung's visit to Brussels, decried the "illegal military cooperation" between Pyongyang and Moscow.

"We condemn support by third parties, in particular the DPRK, which enable Russia to sustain its war of aggression against Ukraine," the statement said, using an acronym for North Korea's official name.

North Korea's foreign ministry said in response that cooperation with Russia was an "exercise of sovereign rights," and the joint statement a "clear infringement on the sovereignty of our state and a grave hostile act."

The ministry's statement, carried by the official Korean Central News Agency, reiterated that South Korea was the North's primary "enemy state."

It went on to describe Seoul as Washington's "favorite dagger" in its alleged aim of "invading... the Asian continent."

This was an apparent reference to remarks by the top American military official in South Korea, General Xavier Brunson, who compared his host nation last month to "the dagger in the heart of Asia."

Both North Korea and its ally China have previously denounced Brunson's remarks, saying they reflected Washington's strategy to contain Beijing.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has boosted an alliance with Russia's Vladimir Putin by sending troops and munitions to aid Moscow's war.

Kim recently hosted Xi Jinping in Pyongyang, after the Chinese leader held back-to-back summits in Beijing with US President Donald Trump and Putin.