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“We want to take this opportunity to warn the US administration of its efforts to spread the smell of gunpowder on our lands,” Kim Yo Jong told the country’s state news agency, urging “not to take the first steps.”
The warning was made by Kim Yo Jong during a visit by senior officials from the administration of US President Joe Biden to Tokyo and Seoul, important allies in Washington.
Pentagon Chief Lloyd Austin and Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrived in Japan on Monday on their first overseas trip to strengthen military alliances as a counterweight to China and unite a united front against North Korea with nuclear weapons.
The statement by North Korean leader Kim Jong Uno’s sister and key adviser, Kim Yo Jong, is Pyongyang’s first comment, making clear about the new American leader who took office more than four months ago to replace Donald Trump as President. However, the statement does not mention the name of the Democratic president.
After the United States and South Korea launched a joint military exercise last week, Pyongyang’s official newspaper Rodong Sinmun issued a statement to Kim Yo Jong with “a little advice for the new administration of the United States, which is fighting for spreading the smell of gunpowder in our land “.
“If you want to get a good night’s sleep for the next four years, you’d be better off not taking jobs early on that would make you lose sleep,” he said.
The relationship between Biden’s predecessor Trump and Kim Jong Un was volatile. In 2017, after repeatedly exchanging harsh insults and mutual threats that led to a drastic rise in tensions, they subsequently took diplomatic measures to improve relations. The leaders held several high-profile meetings, and Trump even said “love” had developed between him and the North Korean leader.
But the Washington and Pyongyang talks on North Korea’s denucleation stalled after the failed second meeting of Kim Jong Un and D. Trump in Hanoi in February 2019. This collapsed over disagreement over what North Korea might do. refuse in exchange for easing the harsh sanctions imposed on the country for prohibited weapons programs.
North Korea is now more isolated than ever since it closed its borders in January last year in a bid to prevent a coronavirus pandemic that began in neighboring China.
Before Biden’s inauguration in January, Kim Jong Un called the United States the “greatest enemy” of his country and Pyongyang demonstrated new submarine-launched ballistic missiles during a military parade.
The month of war
Negotiations between the United States and North Korea have been mediated by South Korean President Moon Jae-in, but relations between Seoul and Pyongyang have plummeted since the collapse of Kim Jong Un and Trump in Hanoi in February 2019. .
Kim Yo Jong is a close adviser to Kim Jong Un and became Pyongyang’s leading voice when last year, following a sharp rise in tensions between Seoul and Pyongyang, North Korea blew up a liaison office building in its territory, symbolizing the rapprochement between the two countries. two neighbors.
Shin Beom-chul, an analyst at the Korea National Strategy Research Institute, noted that Kim Yo Jong’s earlier statements reflected Pyongyang’s incremental moves.
“North Korea has decided that the United States will not offer enough concessions, so it released the statement before Blinken and Austin visited Seoul,” he told AFP.
There is a “high probability” that North Korea will carry out a military provocation during or immediately after the visit, he added.
Seoul and Washington have formed a security alliance. The United States has 28.5 thousand in South Korea. troops to help Seoul defend itself from a nuclear-armed neighbor. Last week, the parties launched a joint military computer simulation exercise.
Pyongyang is constantly outraged by the joint US-South Korean exercise and calls it an invasion trial. In a statement, Kim Yo Jong said: “The South Korean government has once again opted for the ‘war fight’, the ‘crisis fight’, rather than the ‘warm fight’.”
“It will not be easy to return to the warm spring days of three years ago if the South Korean government follows the instructions of its host,” he added, threatening to cancel the two Korean military agreements if Seoul acted “even more provocatively.”
Channel in New York
Austin and Blinken arrived in Tokyo on Monday to consult with him and Seoul on the Biden administration’s review of US policy toward Pyongyang. Still, their discussions will focus on China.
Beijing poses a number of challenges to Washington on the trade and diplomatic fronts. In addition, he is a major diplomatic supporter of Pyongyang, as well as a major business partner and aid donor.
Washington “has been trying to contact North Korea through various channels, including (the channel) in New York, since mid-February,” State Department spokeswoman Jalina Porter told reporters on Monday.
“To date, we have not received any response from Pyongyang,” he added.
Speaking of the “New York Canal,” Porter was referring to North Korea’s mission to the United Nations. Pyongyang and Washington do not have diplomatic relations.
Austin and Blinken will arrive in South Korea on Wednesday. After this visit, the Secretary of Defense will travel to India and the Secretary of State will return to the United States to meet with Chinese officials for dialogue.
It is not allowed to publish, quote or reproduce the information of the BNS news agency in the media and on websites without the written consent of the UAB “BNS”.
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