North Korea dismisses IAEA denuclearization calls as 'silly talk'

Key facts

• Kim Yo Jong denounced the IAEA's general assembly meeting on denuclearization.
• She called the meeting 'familiar silly talk'.
• Kim stated North Korea's position as a nuclear weapons state is absolute and irreversible.
• A spokesperson for North Korea's nuclear power ministry called the IAEA a 'reptile organization' serving the U.S.
• IAEA member states adopted a resolution urging North Korea to suspend its nuclear weapons program.
• Kim Yo Jong dismissed a regional call for denuclearization at the ASEAN Regional Forum.

Kim Yo Jong, the sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, has denounced recent meetings and resolutions by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) concerning Pyongyang's denuclearization efforts. In a statement reported by state media KCNA, Kim referred to the IAEA's general assembly discussion as 'familiar silly talk' and asserted that North Korea's status as a nuclear weapons state is 'absolute' and 'irreversible.'

This stance was reiterated by a spokesperson for North Korea's nuclear power ministry, who described the IAEA as a 'reptile organization' that serves the U.S. and lacks the qualification to comment on North Korea's sovereignty, especially since the DPRK withdrew from the agency in 1994. The spokesperson emphasized that as long as U.S. nuclear weapons and imperialist aggression forces exist, North Korea's nuclear weapons state status will remain unchanged.

These remarks follow the IAEA's 67th General Conference, where member states adopted a resolution urging North Korea to suspend its nuclear weapons program and comply with UN Security Council resolutions. Kim Yo Jong also dismissed a regional call for denuclearization at the ASEAN Regional Forum, calling it a distortion of the security situation and accusing the U.S. and its allies of ignoring North Korea's constitution, which defines it as a nuclear weapons state. Analysts suggest North Korea is using these statements to solidify its nuclear status and resist international efforts to make denuclearization a central diplomatic goal.