Kozhikode: Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan sparked a fresh controversy after he praised North Korea for "successfully defending the pressure imposed by the United States".
"North Korea has been following tough anti-USA agenda. It has successfully defended the pressure imposed by US," Vijayan said while addressing a CPM Kozhikode district committee meeting on Tuesday.
He even went on to say that North Korea fared better than China.
"China's fight against imperialist forces is not living up to the expectations of the people," Vijayan was quoted as saying by India Today.
The statement comes as a shocker from the chief minister of the southern state when no other leaders have spoken on the issue.
In December, a CPI (M) poster carrying a picture of Kim Jong-Un emerged in Kerala's Nedumkandam. The poster was put up in the state to invite CPI (M) cadres to attend a party meeting.
(Photo: ANI | Twitter)
His statements have come up at a time when US President Donald Trump and North Korea's Kim Jong-Un are involved in a bitter war of words over latter's nuclear weapons programme.
Despite warnings, North Korea has conducted several missile launches since Trump came to power in January 2017.
Kim earlier in his annual New Year address had warned that he has a "nuclear button" on his table.
Trump in his reply on Tuesday warned Kim Jong-Un that he possessed a nuclear button that is "much bigger and more powerful" than that of the North Korean leader.
