Kim Jong Un Warns of 'Shocking' Action, Backs Away from Test
Posted: Tue Dec 31, 2019 6:03 pmSEOUL - North Korean leader Kim Jong Un is backing away from his self-imposed moratorium on long-range missile and nuclear tests, warning of unspecified "shocking" action if the United States does not soften its stance in nuclear talks.
Kim said there are no grounds to refrain from such tests as long as the U.S. continues conducting military drills and selling advanced weapons with and to South Korea, according to comments published Wednesday in the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).
North Korea has not conducted a nuclear or ICBM test in over two years. In April 2018, Kim announced his country "no longer need(s)" such tests. That decision helped pave the way for nearly two years of negotiations with the U.S., which are now stalled.
FILE - People watch a TV screen showing a file image of a ground test of North Korea's rocket engine during a news program at the Seoul Railway Station in Seoul, South Korea, Dec. 9, 2019.
U.S. President Donald Trump, who has met with Kim three times, has said the North Korean leader personally promised to not resume ICBM or nuclear tests, though the two leaders never formalized that agreement. Trump has not yet responded to Kim's comments.
In his comments Wednesday, Kim did not appear to formally abandon talks with the U.S., but did unveil a new, firmer stance toward negotiations with Washington.
North Korea will continue developing its "powerful nuclear deterrent," Kim said, warning of an unspecified "shocking actual action."
"The DPRK will steadily develop necessary and prerequisite strategic weapons for the security of the state until the U.S. rolls back its hostile policy," Kim said, using an acronym for North Korea's official name.
"The world will witness a new strategic weapon to be possessed by the DPRK in the near future," Kim said, adding: "We cannot give up the security of our future just for the visible economic results."
Kim may announce further details in a speech expected to be broadcast later on New Year's Day. In his 2019 New Year's speech, Kim warned he may take a "new way" unless the U.S. changes its approach to nuclear talks.