“NO NEGOTIATIONS FOR ETERNITY”
“There will never be, and will never ever be for eternity, any negotiations with enemies of exchanging some things out of some obsession with lifting sanctions,” Kim said.
Sanctions have been “a learning experience” and made his country stronger and more resilient, he said.
North Korea has been under a series of United Nations Security Council resolutions imposing economic sanctions and arms embargoes that have squeezed funding for military development but it has continued to make advances in building nuclear weapons and powerful ballistic missiles.
South Korean President Lee Jae-myung said in an interview with Reuters that those sanctions have ultimately failed to deter the North, which today is adding massive nuclear weapons numbering 15 to 20 to its arsenal every year.
“The reality is that the previous approach of sanctions and pressure has not solved the problem; it has worsened it,” Lee said.
Lee has made peace overtures since taking office in June, saying dialogue with Pyongyang was necessary, and has proposed steps to build confidence and eventually end the North’s nuclear programme.
Lee told Reuters there are formidable obstacles to reopening dialogue with the North but he still believed the phased approach on dismantling Pyongyangs nuclear programme was the realistic option.
It was necessary to create the right conditions to bring the North back to the table and Trump has a key role to play in those efforts, Lee said.
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