North Korean leader announces to resume nuclear and intercontinental ballistic missile tests
On the last day of 2019, the North Korean leader Kim Jong-un declared an end to a moratorium on nuclear weapons and missile tests, ramping up pressure on Washington. He also said his country would soon introduce “a new strategic weapon”.
While accusing the U.S. of damaging denuclearization talks for its own political interests, Kim said he sees no reason to stick to his commitment to suspend nuclear and intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) tests.
However, he left the door open for dialogue depending on the U.S. response.
“North Korea could test a low-level weapon before the end of next month, and ramp up the pressure down the road depending on the response from the U.S.,” professor Yang Moo-jin at the University of North Korean Studies told South Korean Yonhap news agency.
North Korean leader’s comments came at the end of a four-day gathering of party leaders in Pyongyang.
During the party meeting, Mr. Kim lashed criticized the U.S. joint military exercises with South Korea and shipping “ultra-modern warfare equipment” after Pyongyang dismantled its nuclear testing site and committed to suspending nuclear and ICBM tests. “There is no ground for us to get unilaterally bound to the commitment any longer,” Kim said.
He added that there “will never” be denuclearization on the Korean peninsula if the US “persists in its hostile policy” towards the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK), according to the country’s state news agency.
How did the US respond?
In response, U.S. President Donald Trump said he had a good relationship with Kim and believed the North Korean leader would keep his word to refrain from nuclear tests. “I think he’s a man of his word,” Mr. Trump told reporters as he headed into a New Year event in Florida.
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said he hoped North Korea would choose peace over war. “If Chairman Kim has reneged on the commitments he made to President Trump, that is deeply disappointing,” Mr Pompeo told US broadcaster CBS.
“He made those commitments to President Trump in exchange for President Trump agreeing not to conduct large-scale military exercises. We’ve lived up to our commitments. We continue to hold out hope that he will live up to his as well.”
North Korea declared a test moratorium in April 2018 after his cordial meeting with Mr. Trump in Singapore later that year. However, the scheduled February 2019 meetings ended without agreement and relations between the two countries have deteriorated since then.
