At the turn of the year, Supreme Leader Kim Jong-un warned that his country’s new weapons development would be unveiled soon to defy the “gangster-like” US, who have levelled sanctions on Pyongyang. North Korean state media said earlier this month: “He [KimJong-un] said that we will never allow the impudent US to abuse the dialogue for meeting its sordid aim but will shift to a shocking actual action to make it pay for the pains sustained by our people so far and for the development so far restrained.”
Kim added that “if the US persists in its hostile policy… there will never be the denuclearisation on the Korean Peninsula and North Korea will steadily develop necessary and prerequisite strategic weapons for the security of the state until the US rolls back its hostile policy.
“In the past two years alone… North Korea took preemptive and crucial measures of halting its nuclear test and shutting down the nuclear-test ground for building confidence between North Korea and the US.
“The US, far from responding to the former with appropriate measures, conducted tens of big and small joint military drills which its president personally promised to stop and threatened the former militarily through the shipment of ultra-modern warfare equipment into (South Korea).”
North Korea completed a staggering 10 missile tests in 2019.
As National Interest reports, US bombers and Navy vessels have been flying and sailing near the Korean Peninsula over the last few weeks.
The move by Washington’s forces appears to be a precautionary measure as fears of yet another North Korean missile test show no signs of fading.
Having boasted of his progress with Kim, President Donald Trump will want to maintain a state of moratorium over Pyongyang’s missile testing ahead of 2020 elections.
READ MORE:’Not a traitor!’ Why US soldier defected to North Korea
Progress has stalled since the fallout between both countries in Hanoi in February.
The negotiations in Vietnam had initially looked promising when a reporter asked Kim whether he was consider denuclearisation, to which the North Korean President responded: “If I’m not willing to do that, I wouldn’t be here right now.”
However, just hours later a scheduled lunch between Trump and Kim, as well as a potential joint signing ceremony, was cancelled as talks ultimately fell flat.
Evidently President Trump will need a masterstroke to recover denuclearisation talks.