North Korea criticizes efforts to denuclearize the country

(CLO) On Tuesday, North Korea's Foreign Ministry announced it would continue to strengthen its nuclear forces, while criticizing recent commitments by the United States, South Korea, and Japan to denuclearize North Korea, according to a report by the KCNA news agency.

The North Korean Foreign Ministry condemned the three countries for pursuing an "outdated and absurd" plan, and warned against taking actions that would "incite hostility and collective conflict."

A spokesperson for the North Korean Foreign Ministry stated: "As long as the hostile threat from the United States and its allied forces persists, North Korea's nuclear weapons will be a means of safeguarding peace and sovereignty, as well as a legitimate means of self-defense under the country's constitution." North Korea also pledged to continue increasing its nuclear arsenal.

Illustration: Pexel

On the South Korean side, the South Korean Ministry of Foreign Affairs called on North Korea to halt its illegal weapons programs and return to the path of denuclearization.

South Korean Foreign Ministry spokesman Lee Jae-woong emphasized, "North Korea will never be recognized as a nuclear weapons state. We hope North Korea realizes that developing nuclear weapons and missiles only hinders its own security and economic development."

The US-South Korea-Japan pledge came after talks on Saturday between US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yul and Japanese Foreign Minister Iwaya Takeshi at a security conference in Munich, in which the officials reaffirmed their commitment to the complete denuclearization of North Korea.

The trilateral meeting between the United States, South Korea, and Japan was the first since U.S. President Donald Trump took office, who held historic summits with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un during his first term and praised their personal relationship.

Also on Tuesday, the South Korean military announced the deployment of a new bunker-busting missile called the Korean Tactical Surface-to-Surface Missile (KTSSM), which it developed domestically.

The missile, nicknamed Ure, meaning "thunder" in Korean, is capable of carrying out precise and rapid attacks on North Korean long-range artillery systems, which could threaten the Seoul area in the event of an unexpected situation.

Ngoc Anh (according to KCNA, Yonhap, Reuters)

Source: https://www.congluan.vn/trieu-tien-chi-trich-no-luc-cua-my-va-dong-minh-nham-phi-hat-nhan-hoa-nuoc-nay-post335017.html