North Korea joined a chorus of criticism across Asia denouncing a surprise visit by Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi on New Year's Day to a shrine honoring the nation's war dead, warning Saturday it signaled a "revival of militarism."

State-run radio blasted the visit during a morning news broadcast a day after neighboring South Korea made a formal protest and demonstrators gathered outside Japan's consulate in Hong Kong.

"It shows how frantically the ruling class is rushing toward a revival of militarism," Korean Central Broadcasting said in a broadcast monitored in Tokyo by Radio Press.

Thursday's visit by Koizumi to Tokyo's Yasukuni Shrine was the fourth time he has paid his respects there since taking office in April 2001.

All the visits have drawn fire from Japan's neighbors and allies in the rest of Asia, where some consider the shrine a monument to Japanese militarism.

Yasukuni Shrine pays homage to the nation's war dead -- including convicted war criminals from World War II. It honors 2.5 million Japanese who have died in wars since 1853 and a number of convicted World War II Class-A war criminals, including wartime Prime Minister Gen. Hideki Tojo.

North Korea and Japan have no diplomatic relations and state media in the isolated communist nation are typically vitriolic in their criticism of Japan.

Analysts have suggested Koizumi timed his latest visit to score points with conservative voters at a time Japan is divided over plans to send military units to Iraq on a noncombat mission to help with reconstruction efforts. Opponents of the deployment, expected to begin next month, say it will place Japanese lives at risk.