SEOUL, South Korea — North Korean leader Kim Jong Un claimed his nuclear-armed country could “completely destroy” South Korea if its security were threatened, reiterating his refusal to engage with Seoul, state media said Thursday. But it would make sense to keep his options open as the war in Ukraine could wind down, potentially making North Korea less valuable to Moscow, experts say. North Korea often uses the term to describe U.S.-led pressure and sanctions over Kim’s nuclear ambitions. At the congress, Kim derided liberal South Korean President Lee Jae Myung’s calls for engagement as a deception, accusing successive governments in Seoul of seeking Pyongyang’s collapse. He said there is “absolutely nothing to discuss” with an enemy state and that North Korea would “permanently exclude” the South from the notion of a shared nation.

Source: The North Africa Journal February 26, 2026 02:38 UTC