Seoul, April 13 (AHN) A pro-North Korea newspaper based in Japan on Monday called for countries to distance themselves from the United States in a bid to defend their national interests amid the US-Iran war and Tehran's effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz.

Choson Sinbo claimed in its commentary that the blockade of the crucial waterway and volatile oil prices showed that the more countries depend on US-led international order, the greater they could face the risk of their national interests being undermined.

"It remains uncertain regarding how the situation will unfold following a two-week ceasefire. But it would be wise of countries to distance themselves from a belligerent country that only cares about interests of itself and some allies, and to walk on the path to protecting their own interests," the newspaper said.

North Korea appears to be reiterating its long-standing stance of rejecting the US-led international order while supporting the multipolar world order.

Still, the North's state media have not directly criticised US President Donald Trump by name. The Rodong Sinmun, the North's main newspaper targeting the North Korean audience, also has not reported on the US-Iran war, Yonhap news agency reported.

South Korea's spy agency recently said North Korea seems to be distancing itself from Iran in an effort to leave open diplomatic room with Washington, taking the example of Pyongyang not sending a message of condolences over the death of Iran's former supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

Meanwhile, the Navy of Iran's Islamic Revolution Guard Corps (IRGC) said that any "erroneous" move by the "enemy" in the Strait of Hormuz will have deadly consequences.

It issued the warning in a post on social media platform X, sharing "drone surveillance footage of the real situation in the Strait of Hormuz."

The IRGC's Navy said all movements and non-movements in the Strait of Hormuz are under complete control of the Iranian armed forces, adding that, "Any erroneous maneuver will trap the enemy in deadly whirlpools in the strait."