Story highlights The statement follows weeks of escalating tensions between North Korea and the United States

Ri's comments are likely to continue to fuel a mounting war of words between President Trump and Kim

(CNN) US President Donald Trump has "lit the wick of the war" against North Korea, a Russian state news agency quoted North Korea's foreign minister as saying on Wednesday.

The statement follows weeks of escalating tensions between North Korea and the United States, fueled by Pyongyang's repeated nuclear tests and Trump's tough talk.

Speaking to Russia's state-run TASS news agency, North Korea's Foreign Minister Ri Yong Ho cited Trump's September speech to the United Nations General Assembly in New York as the tipping point.

"By his bellicose and insane statement in the UN arena, Trump -- it can be said -- lit the wick of the war against us," Ri is quoted as saying on TASS' English language website. "We need to settle the final score, only with a hail of fire, not words."

During his remarks at the UN last month, Trump threatened to "totally destroy" North Korea and mocked the country's leader, whom he referred to as "Rocket Man."

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