UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said Tuesday that he is "deeply troubled" by rising tensions on the Korean Peninsula and the current crisis has "gone too far."

"I am deeply troubled. As secretary-general, it is my duty to prevent war and to pursue peace. It is also my responsibility to state that the current crisis has already gone too far," Ban told reporters in Andorra, a landlocked microstate in southeastern Europe.

"Aggressive rhetoric and military posturing only result in counter-actions, and fuel fear and instability. Things must begin to calm down, as this situation, made worse by the lack of communication, could lead down a path that nobody should want to follow," he said.

The UN chief called on the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) to avoid "a collision course with the international community," saying that he is "convinced that nobody intends to attack DPRK because of disagreements about its political system or foreign policy."

"However, I am afraid that others will respond firmly to any direct military provocation," Ban said.

"Dialogue and negotiations are the only way to resolve the current crisis," the UN chief said, adding he is ready to help facilitate such efforts.

Tensions have recently been running high on the Korean Peninsula. The DPRK conducted a nuclear test on Feb. 12 as a countermeasure against U.S.-South Korean joint military drills.

The DPRK has also threatened to launch a preemptive nuclear strike for self-defense and has unilaterally nullified the 1953 armistice that suspended the Korean War.

On Tuesday, Pyongyang announced that it had decided to restart operations at the Nyongbyon nuclear complex.

The U.S. Navy was moving a sea-based radar platform closer to the Korean Peninsula in order to monitor military moves of the DPRK, including possible new missile launches, CNN quoted a Pentagon official as saying on Monday.

South Korean President Park Geun-hye on Monday instructed the military to strongly respond to possible provocation by the DPRK without any political considerations. Endi

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