TAIPEI, Taiwan – North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has no intention of negotiating away the country’s nuclear weapons program, said a recent U.S. report, as a top American official warned that Pyongyang may be ready to carry out another nuclear test “on short notice.”
North Korea has dialed up its criticism of the U.S. and two of its key Asian allies – South Korea and Japan – in recent weeks, denouncing their recent joint naval drills as well as warning of an “overwhelming” and “decisive” response to any provocations from “hostile countries.”
Its nuclear program has also advanced significantly, with recent developments including hypersonic missile tests, enhanced uranium enrichment, and the construction of a nuclear-powered submarine.
“Kim has no intention of negotiating away his strategic weapons programs, which he perceives as a guarantor of regime security and national pride, because they threaten the [U.S.] homeland, U.S. forces in the region, and U.S. allies like South Korea and Japan,” said the Annual Threat Assessment of the U.S. Intelligence Community published by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence.
Last year’s edition of the report said that Kim “almost certainly” had no intentions of negotiating away his nuclear program.
Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard said that Kim was pursuing stronger strategic and conventional capabilities that can target U.S. forces and allies in the region, as well as the U.S. mainland, to achieve “at least tacit recognition as a nuclear weapons power.”
“North Korea is probably prepared to conduct another nuclear test on short notice and continues to flight test ICBMs to demonstrate their increasing capabilities as leverage in future negotiations,” said Gabbard at the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence.
Concern over Pyongyang-Moscow ties
The report also pointed out that Russia was increasingly supporting North Korea’s nuclear status in exchange for Pyongyang’s support for Moscow’s war against Ukraine.
“Kim’s newly cemented strategic partnership with Russia is yielding financial benefit, diplomatic support, and defense cooperation. The partnership with Moscow also helps reduce Pyongyang’s reliance on Beijing,” said the report, referring to a comprehensive treaty between two countries.
Russian President Vladimir Putin visited North Korea for talks with Kim in June last year when they announced the treaty, agreeing to offer each other military assistance “without delay” if either were attacked. They also underscored their shared defiance of Western sanctions and expanded cooperation in various sectors.
“North Korea’s advancing strategic weapons capabilities and increasing access to revenue are enabling Kim’s longstanding goals of securing international acceptance as a nuclear power, reducing U.S. military presence on the Korean Peninsula, expanding state control over the North’s economy, and blocking foreign influence,” the report said.
The report also warned that Russia’s ongoing war in Ukraine poses several risks to the U.S., including the chance of the conflict escalating into a larger war, the potential use of nuclear weapons, increased anxiety among NATO allies, and a more confident stance from China and North Korea.
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North Korean threats to US, allies
The report said Kim would threaten to use force when he perceives U.S. and allied actions as challenging the North’s sovereignty, undermining his power or aiming to curb his nuclear and missile ambitions.
In particular, the report raised the possibility of Kim challenging the Northern Limit Line, or NLL, a de facto inter-Korean sea border.
The North has disputed the NLL as it was unilaterally drawn by the U.S.-led U.N. Command after the 1950-53 Korean War.
“Kim in the past has challenged South Korea’s de facto maritime boundary claims and may do so again, raising the prospects of renewed clashes along the NLL,” the report said.
Gabbard also noted concerns about collaboration between China, Russia, Iran and North Korea against U.S. interests.
The intelligence community “sees China, Russia, Iran, and North Korea engaging in activities that could challenge U.S. capabilities and interests, especially related to our security and economy,” she said. “These actors are, in some cases, working together in different areas to target U.S. interests and protect themselves from U.S. sanctions.”
Edited by Mike Firn and Stephen Wright.