The leader of North Korea, Kim Jong Un, said his country plans to develop more nuclear programs and will introduce a new strategic weapon very soon, state media reported Wednesday.
Kim’s words on the fourth day of a meeting of the Central Committee of the ruling Workers Party were also an expected New Year’s message in which he seemed to leave the door open for dialogue with the United States.
Kim said it no longer makes sense to maintain a self-imposed moratorium on nuclear tests and ballistic missiles as part of diplomacy with US President Donald Trump. On the other hand, he did not clarify when they could resume.
The North Korean leader had declared a deadline until the end of the year for the United States to make concessions to resume the stalled dialogue on the denuclearization of the Korean peninsula.
Last year, Kim said he would look for a “new way” if the Trump administration did not make concessions to save the negotiation at the end of December.
North Korea’s threat to show a new strategic weapon would be useless for diplomacy, said Lee Sang-min, spokesman for the South Korean Unification Ministry.
Nuclear weapons
The term strategic weapons usually refer to systems with nuclear capability such as ICBM, but North Korea did not offer more details on what it could present. In December, he announced that he conducted two “crucial” tests at his long-range missile launch facilities that could strengthen his nuclear deterrence strategy.
Kim’s statements, published Wednesday in state media, were made during a critical four-day meeting of the Central Committee of the ruling Workers Party. The summit came after the failure of contacts between Washington and Pyongyang due to disagreements over disarmament and withdrawal of sanctions.
Some experts argue that North Korea, which has always been sensitive to electoral changes in the White House, will avoid firm negotiations in the coming months while observing how it affects the impending political process against Trump in the November presidential elections.
Instead, Kim could try to strengthen his influence by promoting a united front with China and Russia, which are Pyongyang’s two traditional allies, and seek to establish them as the main actors in the North Korean issue. Both Beijing and Moscow asked the United Nations Security Council to consider relief from sanctions to encourage progress in nuclear dialogue.
Alternate suggested by North Korean leader in case of Nuclear weapons
Last year, the North Korean leader said he would seek a “new way” if the Trump administration did not make concessions to save negotiations before the end of December. Kim’s challenging statements at the start of the New Year indicate that his “new path” might look a lot like the old one: the determination to wait for sanctions and pressure, which will possibly weaken over time while cementing his status as a country with nuclear capabilities.
