Kim Young-nam, the ceremonial leader of the North, touted the regime's move to "build up the self-defensive war deterrent" at a Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) summit in Iran, North Korea's state news media said Friday.

"The situation of the peninsula tells us that we were absolutely right to have chosen the path of Songun politics and built up the self-defensive war deterrent," Kim Young-nam, the president of the Presidium of the DPRK Supreme People's Assembly, said in the opening speech at the 16th NAM Summit, according to the

(North) Korean Central News Agency (KCNA). The DPRK stands for North Korea's official name, Democratic People's Republic of Korea.

The North Korean official, meanwhile, blasted the U.S. for its "aggressive" policies, citing a joint military drill with South Korea.

"Even at this moment, the U.S. is staging aggressive joint military exercises Ulji Freedom Guardian targeting the DPRK and is driving the situation on the peninsula to the brink of war, fanning up the hysteria of war against the North," Kim said, adding such moves have turned the Korean Peninsula into "the biggest hotspot of the world."

Kim represented North Korea at the Tehran event. North Korea is among the 120 member states that claim not to be aligned with any major power bloc.

The North Korean official, meanwhile, met U.N. chief Ban Ki-moon on the sidelines of the summit. The U.N. leader expressed hope for improved relations between the two Koreas, according to his spokesman.

(Yonhap News)