North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has used a New Year address to issue a stark warning to Washington and announce that Pyongyang will pursue mass production and operational deployment of nuclear warheads and ballistic missiles in 2018.
“The entire United States is within range of our nuclear weapons, and a nuclear button is always on my desk. This is reality, not a threat,” Kim said, in a provisional translation of his speech.
“This year we should focus on mass-producing nuclear warheads and ballistic missiles for operational deployment. These weapons will be used only if our security is threatened.”
It the sixth nationally televised New Year address for Kim, who wore a Western-style grey suit and tie.
In last year’s speech, Kim said the North was planning to launch an intercontinental ballistic missile.
That came to pass, with a series of ICBM launches that rattled nerves around the world. Pyongyang also conducted its sixth and most powerful nuclear test in September in defiance of international warnings and sanctions, raising fears of a new conflict on the Korean peninsula.
Nevertheless, Kim said in his latest speech, which began at 9am local time on Monday, that it was imperative to lower military tensions on the Korean peninsula and improve ties with South Korea, adding the path to dialogue was open.
Kim said he would consider sending a delegation to the Winter Olympics Games to be held in Pyeongchang, South Korea, in February.
“North Korea’s participation in the Winter Games will be a good opportunity to show unity of the people and we wish the Games will be a success. Officials from the two Koreas may urgently meet to discuss the possibility,” Kim said.
South Korean President Moon Jae-in has said North Korea’s participation will ensure the safety of the Pyeongchang Olympics and proposed last month that Seoul and Washington postpone large military drills that the North denounces as a rehearsal for war until after the Games.
This year’s speech by Kim was seen as particularly important because of the high tensions over Pyongyang’s frequent missile launches and its nuclear test in 2017.
The tests were the focus of fiery verbal exchanges between the North and US President Donald Trump, who has derisively called Kim, “little rocket man”.
In September, Kim memorably called Trump the “mentally deranged US dotard”.
Asked for his reaction to Kim’s remarks about having a nuclear button on his desk, Trump who was celebrating New Year’s at an exclusive bash at Mar-a-Lago said: “We’ll see”.
South Korea assessed that the most recent missile launch in late November of a new Hwasong-15 ICBM – North Korea’s largest yet – could potentially reach Washington, though additional analysis was needed to determine whether it was capable of re-entry into the Earth’s atmosphere.
Kim’s speech on Monday also stressed North Korea’s supposed economic achievements, and noted the importance of improving the nation’s standard of living.