North Korean leader Kim Jong-un said in a speech on Thursday that his country is ready for a military confrontation with the United States. The leader will not hesitate to get his “nuclear deterrent” ready, North Korean state media report.
In his speech, Kim Jong-un also criticized the South Korean government of Yoon Suk-yeol. Kim warned that “any attempt to incapacitate North Korea will be met with a vigorous response and destruction.”
The threatening language follows several missile tests North Korea has conducted in recent months. The country says it is capable of firing nuclear weapons with recently tested hypersonic missiles.
North Korea last conducted a nuclear test in 2017. The country is said to have completed preparations for another nuclear test, South Korean Foreign Minister Chung Eui-Yong said last month. It would have to wait for a “political decision” to actually conduct the test, Chung said.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has made a commitment with his South Korean and Japanese counterparts to work closely together on the “denuclearization of the Korean peninsula”.
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