DPRK denounces NATO summit’s anti-Pyongyang declaration
3 Min Read
The DPRK denounces a declaration at the NATO summit that condemned Pyongyang's weapons exports to Russia, calling the document “illegal”.
-
The DPRK leader Kim Jong Un delivers a speech during a meeting of Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea held from June 28 until July 1, in Pyongyang, DPRK. (AP)
The Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) has strongly criticized a recent declaration from a NATO summit that condemned Pyongyang's alleged weapons exports to Russia.
The joint declaration issued on Wednesday accused the DPRK and Iran of aiding Russia's military operations in Ukraine by providing direct military support. NATO leaders expressed concern that such support impacts Euro-Atlantic security and undermines global non-proliferation efforts.
Additionally, the declaration voiced criticism of China for its alleged support of Russia. In response, the DPRK's Foreign Ministry denounced NATO's actions, labeling the joint declaration "illegal."
On Saturday, the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported that the DPRK "most strongly denounces and rejects" the statement. The statement added that it "incites a new Cold War and military confrontation on a global scale”, and requires “a new force and mode of counteraction."
Meanwhile, the US ally South Korea is pushing for stronger cooperation with NATO countries.
US-South Korea joint military drills
This week, South Korea's presidential office announced that Seoul and Washington plan to continue joint military drills and discuss the deployment of US nuclear assets on and around the Korean peninsula. For its part, China urged NATO to avoid "causing chaos" in the Asia-Pacific region.
“NATO should adhere to its positioning as a regional defensive organization, stop creating tensions in the Asia-Pacific region, stop promoting Cold War mentality and bloc confrontations,” China’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian warned on Monday.
China issued the warning ahead of NATO's summit in the United States, attended by leaders from Asia-Pacific countries such as Japan, South Korea, Australia, and New Zealand.
Earlier this month, the DPRK's Deputy Department Director of the Publicity and Information Department of the Workers' Party of Korea, Kim Yo Jong, called South Korea's recent front-line live-fire drills "suicidal hysteria" as she threatened unspecified military steps if further provoked.
Kim issued a warning after South Korea resumed firing exercises near its tense land and sea borders with the DPRK over the past two weeks. These exercises were the first since South Korea suspended a 2018 agreement with the DPRK, which aimed to ease front-line military tensions, in June.
"The question is why the enemy kicked off such war drills near the border, suicidal hysteria, for which they will have to sustain terrible disaster,” Kim Yo Jong said in a statement carried by state media.
