Kim Jong Un’s sister, Kim Yo Jong, has accused the United States of heightening tensions in the region through its ongoing military exercises. In a statement released by North Korean state media on Friday, she warned that Pyongyang may respond in a ‘more offensive’ manner due to these actions. This escalation in rhetoric underscores the ongoing friction between North Korea and the U.S., particularly concerning military posturing in the region.
North Korea on Friday slammed the US-South Korea military drills and warned of a “more offensive” response from Pyongyang after, according to a statement published by state media.
The comments came amid an escalation in rhetoric from Pyongyang, even as US President Donald Trump has sought to revive diplomacy and improve ties with North Korea but received little response to his overtures.
“The present situation, in which new records are set in terms of practical action hostile toward the DPRK, stresses the need to break records in our responsive action, proportional or more offensive in its nature,” Kim Yo Jong said, using North Korea’s official name, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, according to her statement carried by KCNA news agency. “The DPRK’s position as a nuclear weapons state is absolute which can not reverse with anything,” she said. The statement came during a general conference of the International Atomic Energy Agency in Vienna, with Kim dismissing “familiar silly talk” of efforts to denuclearise the North. “If they believe that it is really possible, they will only hear the word of idiots,” she said.
In a sharply-worded statement a day earlier, Kim mocked those who wish to see North Korea abandon its nuclear program.
