Asia

North Korea’s Choe Vows to Keep Nuclear Weapons Forever, Rejects Denuclearization Call

Read this story on The State of Israel

Published

Courtroom-sketch editorial illustration of North Korean diplomat Choe Son Hui, then vice foreign minister, seated between two DPRK officials across a red-clothed negotiating table from U.S. delegates seen from behind; archival June 2018 Singapore talks context, not a depiction of her September 2026 statement, rendered in warm ochre and slate-blue pastel strokes.

North Korean Foreign Minister Choe Son Hui said on September 24 that Pyongyang's will to keep nuclear weapons "through all ages" is irreversible and will remain unchanged forever. Her statement answered a September 21 joint statement in New York in which U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Japanese Foreign Minister Motegi Toshimitsu and South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Hyun reaffirmed their commitment to North Korea's complete denuclearization. Choe called denuclearization an unrealistic target, said the strong-arm policy against Pyongyang had failed and described nuclear weapons as the core component of the country's sovereignty. She said louder allied calls for denuclearization would only justify strengthening those weapons.

Sources

Primary sources:12

Related stories

  1. Lee Urges U.S.–North Korea Talks at UN, Offers Phased Nuclear Plan
  2. U.S.–South Korea Drills End Six Days Early as North Korea Dismisses Scaled-Back Exercise

Something went wrong

We couldn't complete that action. Check your connection and try again.