North Korea Warns Nuclear Status Is ‘Irreversible’

North Korea has said its status as a nuclear state is permanent and that the U.S. should stop its hostile provocation in calling for Pyongyang’s denuclearization.

Why It Matters

Despite U.N. sanctions, North Korea has developed increasingly sophisticated intermediate-range and intercontinental ballistic missiles, including systems it says can deliver nuclear warheads.

U.S. President Donald Trump has raised the possibility of reengaging with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. Trump met Kim three times during the U.S. president’s first term, in an unsuccessful bid to press North Korea to give up its nuclear program in exchange for sanctions relief.

North Korea’s latest statement underscores its determination to retain its weapons and would appear to rule out any reengagement as long as the U.S. calls for denuclearization.

What To Know

North Korea, officially the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK), set out its position in a statement issued by its permanent mission to the U.N. office and international organizations in Vienna.

Referring to a recent session of the board of governors of the International Atomic Energy Agency, the mission said, “The U.S. again committed a grave political provocation, terming the DPRK’s access to nuclear weapons ‘illegal’ and talking about ‘denuclearization.'”

“The position of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea as a nuclear weapons state which has been permanently specified in the supreme and basic law of the state has become irreversible,” the mission said in its statement, which North Korean state media published on Monday.

The mission said the U.S. had “gone to extremes in its nuclear threat,” adding, “The U.S.-led nuclear alliance is getting desperate in its confrontational moves.” The mission also said that it believed the best way to respond was to build up its nuclear forces.

“To steadily bolster up the nuclear deterrent for self-defense to cope with this reality is the best option for preventing the danger of a nuclear war on the Korean peninsula and in the region and reliably guaranteeing the right to existence and development of our state,” the mission said.

This month, Kim visited a research institute that developed a high-thrust solid-fuel engine, where he said the new engine would be used for the next-generation Hwasong-20 intercontinental ballistic missile now under development.

North Korean state media cited Kim Yo Jong, the powerful sister of the North Korean leader, as condemning on Sunday the latest military exercises between the U.S. and two of its Asian allies—Japan and South Korea.

What People Are Saying

The North Korean mission said in its statement: “The DPRK’s access to nuclear weapons plays a key and important role in guaranteeing global peace and stability as an inevitable option for reliably defending the sovereignty and security of the state from the U.S. persistent nuclear threat and ensuring the balance of strength.”

Kim Yo Jong said in her warning on Sunday to the U.S. and its allies about their latest military exercise: “Reckless muscle-flexing by the U.S., Japan and South Korea in the wrong location … will definitely bring unfavorable consequences.”

What Happens Next

South Korea, Japan and the U.S. launched the annual “Freedom Edge” military exercise on Monday to strengthen their operational capabilities to counter North Korea’s growing nuclear and missile threats, South Korea’s Defense Ministry said. They exercise runs until September 19.