U.S. Acting Assistant Secretary Lisa Peterson of the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor speaks during the release of the "2020 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices" at the State Department in Washington, DC, March 30. Reuters

The United States will hold North Korea accountable for its "egregious" human rights violations, a State Department official said Tuesday, as it released an annual human rights report.

Lisa Peterson, acting assistant secretary of state in the bureau of democracy, human rights and labor, made the remarks, reaffirming human rights will be an "indispensable" element of the Joe Biden administration's policy toward Pyongyang.

The State Department published the 2020 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices, which cited reports of North Korean authorities committing "arbitrary and unlawful" killings and other abuses, such as forced disappearances by the government.

"The State Department, together with the interagency, is currently undergoing a North Korea policy review process, and human rights will remain an indispensable component of our overall policy towards the North Korean Government," Peterson said during a press briefing.