North Korea’s leader, Kim Jong Un, is planning to significantly boost his country’s nuclear arsenal and its operational capabilities. He’s also sending a direct message to Washington, essentially saying that if the United States wants to “get along,” it needs to accept North Korea as a nuclear power, as reported by the BBC. This comes at a really interesting time, especially with President Trump’s recent global security road map seemingly dropping the long-standing goal of North Korean denuclearization.
Kim’s comments came during a five-yearly party congress held in Pyongyang, and they lay out his conditions for any future engagement with the US. He stated that the future of US-North Korea relations “depends entirely on the US attitude,” adding, “Whether it’s peaceful coexistence or permanent confrontation, we are ready for either, and the choice is not ours to make.”
This is a pretty bold stance, telling the US that if it “respects our present [nuclear] position as stipulated in the Constitution… and withdraws its hostile policy… there is no reason why we cannot get along well with the United States.”
President Trump’s global security road map, released last year, notably didn’t mention the denuclearization of North Korea as a goal
This is a huge departure from every US president’s National Security Strategy since 2003, when Pyongyang’s nuclear program first emerged as a major concern. It’s a stark contrast to President Trump’s previous road map from 2017, which actually mentioned North Korea 16 times and called it a “threat” and a “rogue state” that could use nuclear weapons against the US.
Kim has consistently pushed back against the idea of denuclearization, so this isn’t entirely new for him. He told parliament in September that “the concept of ‘denuclearisation’ has already lost its meaning. We have become a nuclear state,” and that “denuclearisation’ is the last, last thing to expect from us.” He also specifically highlighted Pyongyang’s nuclear program at the recent congress, saying, “We will focus on projects to increase the number of nuclear weapons and expand nuclear operational means.”
Despite facing long-standing international sanctions, North Korea has clearly continued to build its nuclear capabilities, regularly testing banned intercontinental missiles. An independent think tank, SIPRI, estimated last year that North Korea already has around 50 assembled nuclear warheads and enough fissile material to produce up to 40 more. Kim had also previously called for a “limitless” expansion of the country’s nuclear program in November 2024.
While Kim seems open to dialogue with the US, he’s definitely slamming the door shut on any diplomatic thaw with South Korea. He called them the North’s “most hostile entity” and declared that he would “permanently exclude Seoul from the category of compatriots.”
He even added that “as long as South Korea cannot escape the geopolitical conditions of having a border with us, the only way to live safely is to give up everything related to us and leave us alone.” An analyst suggested this signals an intention for Pyongyang to pursue relations directly with the US, without involving South Korea.
In a slightly different turn, photos from the closing stages of this year’s party congress also showed Kim’s teenage daughter, Ju Ae, standing right alongside her father at a military parade. She was even wearing a matching black leather jacket! South Korea’s spy agency recently told lawmakers that they believe Ju Ae, who is thought to be 13, has been selected as Kim’s heir.
Published: Feb 26, 2026 01:00 pm