North Korea status as a nuclear-armed state non-negotiable: Kim Yo Jong

North Korea has firmly ruled out any negotiations over its nuclear weapons programme, with Kim Yo Jong declaring that the country's status as a nuclear-armed state is “non-negotiable.”

In a statement carried by state media on Sunday (June 7), the influential sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un dismissed Washington’s denuclearisation efforts as an outdated fantasy and warned that Pyongyang would never tolerate pressure aimed at undermining its nuclear status.

The remarks came just ahead of a planned visit by Chinese President Xi Jinping to North Korea, his first trip to Pyongyang in nearly seven years.

Kim Yo Jong also rejected recent claims by the White House that the United States and China share a common goal of denuclearising the Korean Peninsula, calling such assertions detached from reality.

She reiterated that North Korea’s policy of strengthening its nuclear deterrent is irreversible and will continue under the leadership’s directive, emphasizing that the country's nuclear capability is central to its national security.

The statement follows a series of moves by Pyongyang to expand its military strength. Earlier this week, Kim Jong Un reportedly ordered an “exponential” expansion of the country's nuclear arsenal and announced plans to increase missile production significantly over the next five years.

North Korea has long defended its nuclear and ballistic missile programmes despite international sanctions and formally enshrined its status as a nuclear weapons state in its constitution in 2023.

Source: AFP