dpa
Seoul
North Korea says its nuclear programme is not a bargaining chip, but rather a tool to use against its enemies violating the country’s sovereignty, state media reported on Saturday.
Pyongyang reaffirmed its intention to continue developing its nuclear arsenal hours after Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba and US President Donald Trump reaffirmed their commitment to the “complete denuclearization of North Korea.”
North Korea said its nuclear weapons should not be flaunted for recognition or used as a “bargaining chip for monetary gain, a commentary by state-controlled KCNA news agency said. The commentary in the Pyongyang-based media outlet went on to say that the aim of the country’s nuclear arsenal was to fight off any attempt of invasion by “hostile forces” infringing on the country’s sovereignty “and threaten regional peace.” At a press conference following his meeting with Ishiba, Trump praised his good relationship with North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un.
“We will have relations with North Korea ... I got along with [Kim] very well as you know,” Trump said, referring to his first term in office when he met Kim in person three times.
“We had a good relationship and I think it’s a very big asset for everybody that I do get along with him,” Trump continued. “I get along with him, he gets along with me and that’s a good thing, not a bad thing.”
