North Korean Supreme Leader Kim Jong Un on Friday accused the United States of escalating tensions and warned that the risk of nuclear war remains at an all-time high. Speaking at a defense demonstration in Pyongyang, Kim called Washington’s actions “aggressive and hostile” policies. His past interactions with the US show that the nation has no interest in peaceful coexistence.
“The warring parties on the Korean Peninsula have never faced a confrontation so dangerous and intense that it could be the most devastating. Thermonuclear war“, Kim said, according to state media KCNA.
Kim’s comments come as North Korea continues to expand its nuclear arsenal. The exhibition featured the latest Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles Able to reach the US mainland. Kim vowed to develop “ultra-modern” weapons, calling it the only way to ensure the country’s security.
Kim drew more attention to the failure of his meetings with Donald Trump during Trump’s first term as US president. The two leaders held three summits in 2018 and 2019, including meetings in Singapore and Hanoi, but talks fell apart due to disagreements over sanctions relief and denuclearization.
“We have already gone as far as possible to negotiate with the United States,” Kim said without naming Trump. “But what the result has convinced us is not the will of the superpower to co-exist, but the absolute attitude of its power and its aggressive and hostile policy towards us which can never change,” the Supreme Leader added.
Kim in the US It was also accused of increasing military pressure by increasing cooperation with its allies and deploying weapons such as bombers and aircraft carriers. He called the Korean peninsula “the world’s biggest hotspot” and blamed the US for pushing tensions to the “worst phase in history”.
North Korea’s missile program also targets South Korea and Japan. Analysts believe Kim’s nuclear ambitions are aimed at pressuring Washington to recognize North Korea as a nuclear state and reap economic benefits.
