Kim Yo-jong, the influential sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, stated this Sunday (local time) that North Korea’s status as a nuclear-weapon state is “absolutely irreversible” and warned that Pyongyang will not tolerate any kind of threat against its sovereignty.
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According to statements collected by the state agency KCNA, the Department Director of the Central Committee of the Workers’ Party emphatically reiterated that her country’s nuclear weapons development program is non-negotiable and that its government rejects, once again, any initiative or effort by the international community aimed at the denuclearization of North Korea.
Last Thursday, Kim Jong-un stated that his nation had “more than doubled” its nuclear production capacity for weapons over the past five years, while recalling the directive to “further expand” this potential and to “continue increasing nuclear arsenals.”
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He then pointed out that “prolonged confrontation with enemies and unpredictable long-term crises” highlight “the urgency and responsibility (…) to strengthen, both in quality and quantity, in a sustained and accelerated manner, nuclear deterrence.”
These institutional statements gain even more importance after Pyongyang announced that China’s President, Xi Jinping, will pay a visit to North Korea this Monday, June 8, after receiving an invitation from the North Korean leader.
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