According to official media on Wednesday, North Korea accuses the US and Israel of sabotaging regional peace while respecting Iran’s selection of a new supreme leader.
The US-Israeli strike on Iran has previously been denounced as a “illegal act of aggression” by Pyongyang, a longstanding enemy of the United States.
Iran named Mojtaba Khamenei to succeed his father, longstanding ruler Ali Khamenei, who was killed in an Israeli attack on February 28, defying US President Donald Trump’s wish to have a say in who leads the country.
The official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) cited an unidentified spokesman for Pyongyang’s Foreign Ministry as saying, “We respect the rights and choice of the Iranian people to elect their supreme leader.”
According to the source, Israel and the United States are “destroying the regional peace and security foundations and escalating instability worldwide.”
Advertisements by
The spokesperson charged that Israel and Washington were trying to “overthrow its social system” and undermining Iran’s “political system and territorial integrity.”
The official continued, saying that such acts “deserve worldwide criticism and rejection as they can never be tolerated.”
For decades, the United States has spearheaded attempts to undermine North Korea’s nuclear program, but diplomatic pressure, summits, and sanctions have had minimal effect.
The North did not respond to Trump’s statement that he was “100 percent” open to meeting with Kim on his October trip to Asia.
The North did not respond to Trump’s statement that he was “100 percent” open to meeting with Kim on his October trip to Asia.
Kim recently stated that if Washington acknowledged Pyongyang’s nuclear status, the two countries might “get along” after mostly disregarding those overtures for months.
“Horrible repercussions”
The Kim of North Korea supervised another test firing of strategic cruise missiles from the naval Choe Hyon destroyer, according to Pyongyang’s state media on Wednesday.
Last week, North Korea conducted a similar missile launch from the ship, claiming to be “arming the Navy with nuclear weapons.”
Kim emphasized the significance of developing a “powerful and reliable nuclear war deterrent” during the event, according to KCNA.
State media presented images of Kim supervising the launch from a distance using video footage alongside his teenage daughter, Ju Ae, who is now considered to be his heir apparent.
Kim stated that “significant progress” has been achieved in the actual application of “strategic and tactical strike means” there.
Pyongyang looks to have started the process of appointing Ju Ae as leader Kim’s successor, according to South Korea’s spy service. The North often releases pictures of the young daughter out on official business with her father.
The test coincided with the start of Washington and Seoul’s “Freedom Shield” springtime military exercises on Monday. In response, Pyongyang threatened “unimaginably terrible consequences.”
In an effort to bolster the navy with short-range tactical missiles that can deliver nuclear bombs, Kim launched two 5,000-ton destroyers last year, including the Choe Hyon.
Former University of North Korean Studies president Yang Moo-jin told AFP that North Korea seems to be “securing the legitimacy and justification for bolstering war deterrence.”
The North is characterizing the joint US-South Korea exercises “as not merely defensive and routine, but ultimately attempts at a preemptive war” in light of the conflict in Iran.
