North Korean move to join Twitter was welcomed by the US government who also called upon the insular nation to let its citizens also see the recently opened account and access the web at all.

"We use Twitter to connect, to inform, and to debate. We welcome North Korea to Twitter and the networked world," wrote Philip Crowley, a state department spokesman on his Twitter account.

The message came days after Uriminzokkiri, the closest thing North Korea has to an official Web site, established a Twitter account. The account has to date posted messages only in Korean but that hasn't stopped it becoming somewhat of a Twitter hit. Publicity from the launch has resulted in over 5,000 followers subscribing to the slow stream of government propaganda.

"The North Korean government has joined Twitter, but is it prepared to allow its citizens to be connected as well?," asked Crowley on his Twitter account.