North Korea denounced the announcement of discussions on Korean Peninsula denuclearization at the upcoming South Korea-China summit as a pipe dream.
North Korea’s state-run Korean Central News Agency reported that Vice Foreign Minister Park Myung-ho issued a statement responding to the South Korean presidential office’s announcement. The announcement had indicated that the agenda for the South Korea-China summit would include talks on denuclearization and peace on the Korean Peninsula.
Vice Minister Park stated that South Korea attempts to raise the denuclearization issue at every opportunity. Their persistent denial of North Korea’s status as a nuclear-armed state while harboring delusions about achieving denuclearization only exposes their profound ignorance.
He further emphasized that it will patiently demonstrate that no matter how many times they repeat their denuclearization mantra, it remains a pipe dream that will never come to fruition.
Previously, South Korean presidential spokesperson Kang Yu-jung had stated in a press briefing that both President Lee Jae Myung and Chinese President Xi Jinping would prioritize addressing issues related to people’s livelihoods. She added that discussions on Korean Peninsula denuclearization and achieving peace would be included in the agenda as an extension of these livelihood issues.
The Vice Foreign Minister’s statement appears to be an attempt to pressure China ahead of the South Korea-China summit. Notably, when denuclearization was mentioned in a joint statement from a South Korea-China-Japan summit last May, a North Korean foreign ministry spokesperson had similarly rebuked it as blatant interference in internal affairs.