North Korea: Nuke, ballistic rockets non-negotiable

Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) Foreign Minister Ri Yong Ho said Monday that his country will not give up its nuclear forces despite the pressure of various countries on North Korea for denuclearization.

“We will, under no circumstances, put the nuke and ballistic rockets on negotiating table,” Ri said in a statement released to media.

Ri’s statement at the 24th ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF) Ministerial Meeting was included in the document released to media.

“Neither shall we flinch even an inch from the road to bolstering up the nuclear forces chosen by ourselves, unless the hostile policy and the nuclear threat of the U.S. against the DPRK are fundamentally eliminated,” he said.

Ri also reitirated that North Korea’s nuclearization is a legal option for self-defense.

He added that the United States is trying to globalize the nuke issue, making it a “global threat” wherein the threat is only confined to the U.S.

“The U.S. is trying to internationalize the nuclear issue of the Korean Peninsula by abusing UN (United Nations) while clamoring that DPRK’s possession of nuclear weapons is a “global threat”,” DPRK’s top diplomat said.

He said the North Korea expected ASEAN and other member states of the ARF that they will distinguish the essence of its nuclearization — “a war deterrence to put an end to the nuclear threat of the U.S. and prevent military invasion of the U.S.”.

“Member states of the Forum should know correctly with distinction whether our possession of nukes and ICBM (intercontinental ballistic missile poses a “global threat” as clamoured by the U.S. or a the threat confined to the U.S. alone,” Ri noted.