SEOUL, South Korea — North Korean leader Kim Jong Un commissioned his second naval destroyer and called for building a more reliable nuclear deterrent, state media reported Monday, as the U.S., South Korea and Japan began a trilateral military exercise he views as a security threat.
Kim and Trump’s earlier diplomacy collapsed in 2019 due to disputes on how much economic benefits North Korea should get in return for a limited denuclearization step. It cited the Freedom Edge exercise and U.S. officials’ reported comments that the U.S. remains committed to the complete denuclearization of North Korea.
In a speech at the ceremony, Kim said the destroyers’ back-to-back commissionings instilled fear in the enemies as the nuclear armament of North Korea’s navy made it possible to exercise its nuclear deterrent in a more diversified, practical manner. “Concerns of the enemies will be surely deepened,” Kim said. South Korea’s military recently said the exercise is defensive in nature is meant to respond to North Korea’s nuclear threats. 21, the U.S. and South Korean militaries ended their annual Ulchi Freedom Shield exercise six days earlier than originally planned, after Trump said he had ordered the Pentagon to “substantially reduce” the drill. Kim Jong Un has previously said he could return to talks if the U.S. drops its “hostile policy” against North Korea and respects what he calls North Korea’s status as a nuclear state.
The development comes as North Korea is dialing up pressure on the U.S. after rebuffing President Donald Trump’s decision to scale back a major military drill with South Korea in a conciliatory step toward Kim. Observers say North Korea wants to wrest bigger U.S. concessions. “We must establish more clearly a powerful and reliable nuclear war deterrent, to put into practice the diverse and effective operation of our nuclear combat systems and further strengthen our military activities for maritime defense and war deterrence. Last week, North Korea’s Foreign Ministry accused the U.S. of more clearly expressing its confrontational posture against the North. On Aug. Trump cited what he described as a good relationship with Kim, who views the drill as an invasion rehearsal. Now with his advancing nuclear program and deepened ties with Russia and China, experts say Kim has greater leverage than before.
On Monday, the U.S., South Korea and Japan were set to kick off their five-day Freedom Edge exercise in the waters off South Korea’s southern Jeju island.
