N. Korean foreign minister blames U.S. for Pyongyang's nuclear development

N. Korean foreign minister blames U.S. for Pyongyang's nuclear development. April. 23, 2016 07:21. by 뉴욕=부형권특파원, 워싱턴=이승헌 bookum90@donga.com,특파원ddr@donga.com.

North Korean Foreign Minister Ri Su Yong said during his visit to New York on Thursday that his country developed nuclear weapons only to cope with nuclear threats from the United States. "We tried to hold a dialogue and make efforts through international law to remove nuclear threats, but we were left with only one choice, which is to respond to nukes with nukes," Ri claimed.

During his keynote speech at a high-level meeting of the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals at the U.N. headquarters in New York, Ri also said that the United States is conducting "the biggest-ever nuclear war exercises" on the Korean Peninsula, mobilizing 300,000 military personnel and U.S. nuclear assets. He reiterated Pyongyang's claim that it developed nuclear weapons and missile because of the United States' "nuclear threats" against the North.

He also argued that the United States' mobilization of the U.N. Security Council to impose sanctions on his country was in violation of international law and the U.N. charters. He added that the sanctions are a "challenge" against the North's sustainable development and that his country will overcome the sanctions and have a "final victory," which he said was North Korean leader Kim Jong Un's political determination. One U.N. source said that Ri's remarks seemed to be aimed at building up excuses for continuing nuclear provocations unless Washington has a dialogue with Pyongyang.