HANOI: New US sanctions against North Korea will violate a United Nations statement issued after the sinking of a South Korean warship, a spokesman for Pyongyang said Thursday.

Ri Tong Il, a spokesman for the North Korean delegation at regional security talks in Vietnam, said the measures announced Wednesday by US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton were \"in violation\" of the July 9 UN statement.

Ri added that imminent naval exercises with South Korea also violated the UN statement following the sinking of the South Korean warship Cheonan in March, with the loss of 46 lives.

South Korea, the United States and other nations -- citing the findings of a multinational investigation -- have accused the North of sending a submarine to torpedo the ship near the tense Yellow Sea border.

The UN condemned the attack as a threat to regional peace and called for \"appropriate and peaceful measures\" against those responsible.

It welcomed Seoul`s restraint and called for direct talks to settle disputes on the peninsula peacefully.

The UN expressed deep concern at the findings of the multinational investigation team, but noted the North`s denial of responsibility and did not apportion blame -- a result hailed as a \"victory\" in Pyongyang.

BDST: 1026 HRS, July 22, 2010