The foreign ministry statement came after North Korean state media reported earlier Friday that Pyongyang had passed a law allowing for preventive strikes -- including in the face of conventional attacks.

"This new escalation on the part of the North Korean authorities represents a threat to international and regional peace and security," said a ministry spokeswoman.

France "notes with great concern the increasingly aggressive declarations from North Korea", she added.

The move by Pyongyang effectively eliminates the possibility of denuclearisation talks, leader Kim Jong Un having said that the country's status as a nuclear state is now "irreversible".

The announcement comes at a time of heightened tension between North and South.

Pyongyang has blamed Seoul for the outbreak of Covid-19 in its territory and conducted a record number of weapons tests this year.