North Korea will never renounce its status as a nuclear-armed state, leader Kim Jong Un declared in a policy address delivered on Monday and reported by state media on Tuesday. The statement followed his reappointment a day earlier as head of the State Affairs Commission, the country’s top policymaking body, and outlined plans to expand and maintain the country’s nuclear deterrent.
In a lengthy speech at the rubber-stamp legislature in Pyongyang, Kim — speaking on matters ranging from defence policy to the economy and foreign relations — said Pyongyang would “firmly consolidate” its nuclear status and further develop its “self-defensive nuclear deterrent,” according to the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA). He emphasized that the nuclear forces would be kept at “precise readiness” to counter what he called strategic threats.
Kim also used the address to sharply criticise South Korea, labelling it “the most hostile state” and warning that Pyongyang would not hesitate to punish any action it perceives as infringing on the North. He said Pyongyang would “make it pay mercilessly” for such acts, language that underscores rising tensions on the peninsula.
The speech comes as Kim, the third-generation leader who has ruled since 2011, was re-elected by the North’s legislature as president of state affairs, KCNA reported, without specifying whether the vote was unanimous. International critics say such elections in North Korea are pre-determined and serve mainly to provide a veneer of legitimacy to the leadership.
The address reiterates Pyongyang’s long-standing posture of strengthening nuclear capabilities as central to its defence strategy. It signals continued resistance to diplomatic pressure from Seoul and Washington and a firm commitment to maintain and advance North Korea’s strategic forces.
Original Source: https://www.ndtv.com/world-news/n-koreas-kim-vows-irreversible-nuclear-status-warns-seoul-of-merciless-response-11257144#publisher=newsstand
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Publish Date: 2026-03-24 04:08:00
