North Korea's Vice Foreign Minister Kim Son-gyong stated that Pyongyang's status as a nuclear weapons state is permanently fixed and cannot be reversed under any circumstances. He defended the nuclear deterrent as essential for sovereignty and security against external threats, criticizing trilateral military cooperation between South Korea, the U.S., and Japan.
The firm stance from North Korea on its nuclear program underscores the ongoing geopolitical tensions on the Korean Peninsula and complicates international efforts towards denuclearization, potentially impacting regional security dynamics and diplomatic engagement.
North Korea's Vice Foreign Minister Kim Son-gyong declared on September 28, 2026, that Pyongyang's status as a nuclear weapons state is permanently fixed and cannot be reversed under any circumstances. Speaking at the U.N. General Assembly in New York, Kim defended the North's nuclear deterrent as an "irresistible" force essential for protecting its sovereignty and security against external aggression.
Kim criticized the trilateral military cooperation between South Korea, the United States, and Japan, asserting that it escalates security instability on the Korean Peninsula and breaks "worst records" in scale, intensity, nature, and danger. He attributed the absence of physical conflict to North Korea's "war deterrent" powerful enough to deter aggression.
The vice minister also condemned South Korea's pursuit of nuclear-powered submarines, supported by the U.S., stating that such ambitions aggravate the region's security landscape. He reiterated North Korea's commitment to managing external threats with "overwhelming strength" and acting as a "responsible" nuclear weapons state.
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