North Korea’s ruler Kim Jong Un accuses South Korea of having a “confrontational attitude”. But he wants to resume communication with the neighbor.
After a week-long interruption, North Korea wants to reopen the communication channels with South Korea.
In a speech to parliament in Pyongyang on Wednesday, ruler Kim Jong Un accused the neighboring country of being “slavish” towards its ally, the USA, and of being responsible for the deadlock in inter-Korean relations. However, it is the wish of all Koreans that relations improve again. Kim has expressed the intention that the communication lines would first be restored in early October, the state-controlled media reported on Thursday.
Both states had reopened the communication channels between the governments and the military at the end of July after they unilaterally cut North Korea last year due to new tensions. But after only two weeks, North Korea stopped the connection in protest against joint military exercises by South Korea and the USA.
It was initially unclear whether Kim was looking for a direct route to a dialogue with Seoul with the intended restoration. Most recently, Pyongyang had once again held out the prospect of talks with its neighbors, including a new summit meeting, under certain conditions. The South Korean government accused Kim of adopting a “confrontational stance”. That has to change. “We have neither the goal nor a reason to provoke South Korea.”
North Korea, which is subject to international sanctions because of its nuclear weapons program, caused unrest this month with new missile tests. On Tuesday, the country said it had tested a newly developed hypersonic missile. Hypersonic describes speeds above five times the speed of sound, i.e. around 6180 kilometers per hour. Weapons of this type are therefore difficult to intercept. South Korea had expressed regrets about the new missile test.
North Korea had fired two short-range missiles two weeks ago. South Korean President Moon Jae In described the test as a “provocation” at the time. UN resolutions prohibit North Korea from testing ballistic missiles, which, depending on their design, can also carry a nuclear warhead.
In his speech at the two-day parliamentary session, Kim said he refused to accept the US offer to unconditionally resume talks on his country’s nuclear program. He accused the government of President Joe Biden of continuing the “hostile policies” of earlier American governments. Washington’s talks are “nothing more than a little trick to deceive the international community and hide its hostile actions.”
The negotiations between North Korea and the USA have not made any progress since Kim’s failed summit with former US President Donald Trump in Vietnam in February 2019. Relations within Korea also suffered from the stalemate.
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