Kim says nuclear status is North Korea's only option, blames US for global conflicts
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- Kim Jong Un told the Workers' Party Central Committee that fully exercising North Korea's position as a nuclear weapons state is "the most correct and unique way" to cope with an increasingly unpredictable international military and political situation.
- Kim accused the United States of fueling conflicts and bloodshed in Europe and the Middle East, blaming "gangster-like" hegemonic forces for "unimaginable, astonishing incidents and events" unfolding worldwide.
- Kim accused the US and South Korea of making the Korean Peninsula more dangerous by steadily strengthening their joint military and nuclear posture, which he said was aimed at North Korea.
- Kim ordered the development of more advanced conventional weapons and called for accelerating construction of a 10,000-ton strategic guided missile cruiser, according to state-run KCNA.
- KCNA provided no details of any specific nuclear measures, though Kim's remarks reaffirmed Pyongyang's commitment to further strengthening its strategic deterrent despite years of international sanctions and diplomatic pressure.
- North Korea has repeatedly declared its nuclear status irreversible, a stance that continues to raise concerns among regional powers and the wider international community.
Why it matters: Kim's combination of reaffirmed nuclear commitment, a concrete order to build a 10,000-ton guided missile cruiser, and accelerated conventional weapons development shows that sanctions and diplomatic pressure have failed to shift Pyongyang's military trajectory. The simultaneous expansion of nuclear and conventional capabilities, paired with his framing of the US as the source of global instability, narrows the diplomatic space for regional powers seeking denuclearization.
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