In a rare display of rapid-fire messaging, the powerful sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has issued back-to-back warnings to the United States and South Korea, rejecting any attempt to question its nuclear status.
Analysts interpret the diplomatic offensive, being led by Kim Yo-jong, as Pyongyang’s bid to seize control of the diplomatic agenda on the Korean peninsula following the recent change of power in Seoul.
On Tuesday, Kim cautioned the US against pursuing denuclearisation, following remarks from a White House official suggesting that President Donald Trump was still open to talks with Pyongyang.
“Any attempt to deny the position of the DPRK as a nuclear weapons state … will be thoroughly rejected,” she said in a statement to state media, referring to the North by the initials of its official name, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.
While noting the “personal relationship” between her brother and Trump was “not bad”, Kim warned that it should not be used “to serve the purpose of denuclearisation” in any future talks. Should the US adopt such a stance, “it can be interpreted as nothing but a mockery of the other party”, she added, demanding that Washington recognise North Korea as a “nuclear weapons state”.
