The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea’s (DPRK) deputy foreign minister stated that South Korea’s denials of North Korea’s nuclear status would not alter the existing reality.
Pyongyang has labeled the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula an unattainable objective. This declaration follows an appeal made by South Korea to China earlier in the week for assistance in resolving the nuclear standoff.
During a statement released Friday via the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), DPRK Deputy Foreign Minister Pak Myong Ho asserted that Pyongyang would “patiently demonstrate that denuclearization remains an ‘unrealistic fantasy’ that can never materialize, regardless of how frequently [South Korea] brings it up.”
He characterized Seoul’s persistent attempts to dispute North Korea’s nuclear standing as exhibiting a “deficiency in common sense.”
Earlier in the week, South Korean President Lee Jae Myung encouraged Beijing to undertake a “constructive role” in fostering peace and discovering “a tangible resolution to the nuclear problem on the Korean Peninsula.”
At the APEC summit on Saturday, President Lee held discussions with Chinese President Xi Jinping. According to reports from Seoul, the leaders addressed strengthening bilateral relations, and Lee “sought a constructive contribution from China to facilitate the restart of negotiations with North Korea.”
Furthermore, Lee informed journalists of his backing for renewed discussions between US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.
Earlier this week, Trump expressed that he would “welcome a meeting” with Kim and suggested the possibility of utilizing US sanctions as leverage should negotiations restart. During his initial presidential term, Trump made history as the first sitting US president to enter North Korea, engaging with Kim on three occasions between 2018 and 2019 to discuss denuclearization in return for economic and security assurances, although a consensus was never achieved.
Although a meeting between Trump and Kim did not occur during the US president’s recent Asia tour, Kim stated his openness to such a discussion and maintained a “favorable recollection” of Trump – despite labeling US demands for North Korea to relinquish its nuclear armaments as “preposterous.”
Pyongyang has steadfastly maintained that its nuclear armed forces are intended to “persist indefinitely” to safeguard its “sovereignty, territorial integrity, and core interests.” Additionally, it has charged the US with instigating unrest and endeavoring to forge an “Asian counterpart to NATO” through its military alliances with Japan and South Korea.