North Korean leader says past diplomacy only confirmed US hostility
Associated PressSEOUL, South Korea — North Korean leader Kim Jong Un said his past negotiations with the United States only confirmed Washington’s “unchangeable” hostility toward his country and described his nuclear buildup as the only way to counter external threats, state media said Friday. He called for accelerated efforts to advance the capabilities of his nuclear-armed military, saying the country’s only guarantee of security is to build up the “strongest defense power that can overwhelm the enemy.” Kim’s expanding nuclear weapons and missile programs include various weapons targeting South Korea and Japan and longer-range missiles that have demonstrated the range to reach the U.S. mainland. North Korean state media photos of this year’s exhibition showed various artillery systems, including what appeared to be 240mm multiple rocket launch systems that South Korea’s spy agency believes were part of the North Korean weaponry recently sent to Russia. When asked whether North Korea was showcasing the systems it intends to export to Russia, Koo Byoungsam, a spokesperson for South Korea’s Unification Ministry, said he wouldn’t make “premature judgments” but said the government was “monitoring related trends.” “We stress once again that arms transfers between Russia and North Korea are a clear violation of U.N. Security Council resolutions and an illegal act that undermines the norms of the international community,” he said.