North Korea: Nuclear Weapons Designed For Combat Needs

Illustration of North Korea. (Wikimedia Commons/Roman Harak)

JAKARTA - North Korea (North Korea) on Saturday said its nuclear weapons were designed for combat purposes, not "barrings" amid tensions on the Korean Peninsula.

Pyongyang said in comments published by the government-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) that its nuclear power was not to be negotiated but to combat purposes, after the US said Washington would seek " North Korea's full denuclearization," under President Donald Trump's administration.

"Our nuclear power is not something that can be advertised for recognition from anyone and not even a bargaining chip that can be exchanged for a few cents," KCNA said.

"Our country's nuclear force is used for constant fighting to immediately get rid of any attempted invasion by enemy forces that violate the country's sovereignty and the safety of its people and threaten regional peace," he wrote in Korean.

Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, in a press conference with President Trump on Friday said it was necessary to address North Korea's nuclear and missile programs, which pose a "serious threat" to Japan, the US, and its surroundings.

"Japan and the US will work together to seek full denuclearization of North Korea," he said.

However, Trump said Washington would be in a relationship with North Korea. Meanwhile, NATO and European Union officials reiterated that they would not accept North Korea as a nuclear-powered country.

North Korea denounced the statement as "absurd."

Trump became the first US president to set foot in North Korea in 2019. As part of negotiations with Pyongyang about his banned ballistic and nuclear missile program, he met Kim Jong Un in the demilitarized zone separating North Korea and South Korea.

North Korea has since carried out missile and nuclear tests, including what it claims to launch a solid-fuel intercontinental ballistic missile that was successful in 2023.