North Korea asserted on Sunday that its status as a nuclear state is 'irreversible,' rebuffing calls from the United States and its allies for disarmament.
Pyongyang has consistently emphasized that it will not relinquish its nuclear arsenal, which it considers essential for deterrence. Earlier this month, Kim Yo Jong, the sister of Kim Jong Un, described this policy as an 'uncompromising line.'
The statement followed a trilateral meeting in Tokyo on Friday between South Korea, Japan, and the United States, where allies reiterated their commitment to 'complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula,' according to South Korea's foreign ministry.
A North Korean spokesperson, who remained unnamed, stated via the state-run Korean Central News Agency on Sunday that 'the empty rhetoric of the United States and its followers against the Democratic People's Republic of Korea... will never affect its irreversible stance as a nuclear state.'
The official added, 'The issue of 'denuclearization' is settled and irreversible.'
The spokesperson also cited Washington's sale of weapon systems to Seoul and Tokyo as justification for Pyongyang's adherence to its nuclear program, which they described as a 'strong security guarantee for regional stability and peace.'
The official stated, 'Regardless of how much the United States, Japan, and South Korea engage in empty argument, they will never change North Korea's current status as a nuclear state.'
In international news, North Korea criticizes Washington for approving missile sales to Seoul.
North Korea accelerated its nuclear program following the collapse of talks with Washington in 2019, after the Hanoi summit between Kim and U.S. President Donald Trump ended without an agreement.
In a potential reference to the failed negotiations, the spokesperson remarked, 'No one can retrieve the 'denuclearization' request that was irrevocably lost in the course of time.'
Kim recently hosted Chinese President Xi Jinping in Pyongyang, following consecutive summits in Beijing with Trump and Putin by Xi.
Neither side addressed the issue of denuclearization, as reported by official media outlets.