Tensions have escalated with North Korea over the passage of new U.N. sanctions. On Thursday, the North Korean regime said it would cancel its peace pacts with South Korea and cut off a hotline between the two countries. The regime also threatened to launch preemptive attacks on the United States. The moves came as the Security Council approved a new round of sanctions drafted by the United States in response to North Korea’s third nuclear test last month. The U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, Susan Rice, dismissed North Korea’s latest threats.

Susan Rice: “North Korea will achieve nothing by continued threats and provocations. These will only further isolate the country and its people and undermine international efforts to promote peace and stability in northeast Asia.”

The new sanctions add more North Korean government officials to a U.N. blacklist and tighten controls on North Korean finances. An annual U.S.-South Korea military drill is underway, and both North Korea and South Korea are planning more military exercises next week, heightening fears of an incident on the border.