North Korea will completely review its policy toward the United States if Washington keeps pressuring Pyongyang on human rights, a senior North Korean diplomat said Wednesday.

In an interview with the Voice of America (VOA), Jang Il-hun, North Korea's deputy U.N. ambassador in New York, said his country has constantly called for "dialogue and cooperation" with the international community on the human rights issue.

The North, he added, may discuss whether to allow an on-site probe into human rights conditions in the communist nation if it receives a positive response to the offer.

"It is a subject for discussion as long as the matter is handled in a positive manner," Jang was quoted as saying.

He strongly condemned the U.S. and some other nations for seeking to bring the North's leaders to the International Criminal Court.

He also claimed there is not a single political prison camp in his nation, saying related reports, based on defectors' testimony, had been fabricated.

Jang questioned the need for restarting the six-party talks on the North's nuclear weapons program. 

"I do not see the point of having the six-party talks at this point," he said. "In view of the current situation, I have doubts about what we can get from the six-way talks."

He argued Washington has continued "nuclear blackmail and military pressure" on Pyongyang without acknowledging its sovereignty.

The North has already declared itself a nuclear state in its Constitution and announced a policy of developing the economy and its nuclear programs alike, Jang said.

At a time when the U.S. is ratcheting up pressure on North Korea over its human rights situation, North Korea "has no option but to review our policy toward America completely,” he added.

The VOA, based in Washington D.C., said the 20-minute interview was conducted earlier this week in New York shortly after Jang's participation in a seminar hosted by the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR). (Yonhap)