North Korea criticizes the G7 denuclearization call. KCNA said Friday that North Korea would continue to expand its military until military threats from the U.S. and its allies are eradicated.
North Korean Foreign Minister Choe Son Hui’s statement criticized the U.S. and other G7 nations. After meeting in Japan on Tuesday, the G7 foreign ministers criticized the North’s April 13 test of a solid-fuel intercontinental ballistic missile and called for denuclearization.
North Korea has increased military activity and warned of “more practical and offensive” action as U.S. and South Korean forces perform springtime military drills.
North Korea has slammed those exercises “an all-out, nuclear war.”
Choe claimed North Korea’s nuclear status is “final and irreversible” and will remain an “undeniable and stark reality” even if Washington and others in the West dispute it.
She urged Washington to halt its “hostile policy” toward Pyongyang to preserve its security.
“It is anachronistic to think that the right to and capability for nuclear strike is exclusive to Washington,” she told KCNA. “We will never seek recognition or approval from anyone, as we are satisfied with our access to the strength for a tit-for-tat strike against the U.S. nuclear threat.”
Choe said Pyongyang would respond if the G7 countries tried to violate North Korea’s sovereignty and fundamental interests by demanding denuclearization.
“We will continue to take action measures based on all legal rights granted to a sovereign state until the military threat posed by the U.S. and its allied forces hostile toward us is completely removed,” Choe stated.
According to Seoul’s unification ministry, the North’s declaration was “far-fetched,” which urged it to quit threatening and developing illegal weapons.
“North Korea will never get what it wants through nuclear and missile development, and it will only become more isolated from the international community,” ministry deputy spokesman Lee Hyo-jung told a briefing.
