Leader Kim Jong-un delivering a speech at the opening ceremony of an arms exhibition titled "National Defense Development-2024," in Pyongyang on Thursday. (KCNA)
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has said that his country went to every length in negotiations with the United States, but it only confirmed Washington's unwavering hostile policy toward Pyongyang, the North's state media said Friday.
Kim made the remarks during a speech at the opening ceremony of an arms exhibition titled "National Defense Development-2024," in Pyongyang the previous day, the Korean Central News Agency said.
"We have already gone to every length in negotiations with the US, and what was certain from the outcome was ... the unchanging invasive and hostile policy toward North Korea," Kim noted in the speech.
Kim's latest remarks appear to dash prospects for US-North Korea dialogue, after former US President Donald Trump's reelection in early November sparked speculation about a possible return to summit diplomacy between the two.
During Trump's first term, he and Kim had multiple meetings, including two summit talks in Singapore and Vietnam in 2018 and 2019, respectively, but failed to reach a meaningful deal.
Kim has now accused the US of strengthening military alliances and deploying strategic weapons targeting North Korea, escalating military pressure and provocations to "extremes."
"In light of this reality, (North Korea) realizes every day and every hour that achieving the most powerful military capabilities is the only way to maintain peace and provides a solid guarantee of security and development," he noted.
He stated that his country will never, under any circumstance, overlook its security being breached, pledging that there will never be an occasion for the country to give up the "pendulum of the military balance" on its own.
During the speech, he also outlined tasks for upgrading military weapons to match modern warfare, saying that the country will "evolve self-defense capabilities more aggressively and without limits to correspond to the ever-evolving threats of enemy warfare methods."
The Korean Central News Agency reported that the defense fair showcased the country's latest cutting-edge defense products, including strategic and tactical weapons.
According to a published photo of the event, intercontinental ballistic and hypersonic missiles were on display, as well as drones and multiple rocket launchers, all of which the North has unveiled so far this year. (Yonhap)
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