Kim Jong Un Declares Nuclear Status Irreversible

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un declared on Monday that his country's nuclear-armed status is irreversible, pledging to expand its self-defensive deterrent while condemning United States actions as state terrorism and aggression. Speaking to the Supreme People's Assembly in Pyongyang shortly after his reelection as head of the State Affairs Commission, Kim justified the nuclear program as essential for national security and sovereignty, citing recent U.S. and Israeli military strikes on Iran as evidence of the dangers facing non-nuclear states.

The address, delivered during the first session of the newly elected 15th Supreme People's Assembly, came amid heightened regional tensions. Kim accused Washington of trampling the dignity and rights of sovereign states through unilateral coercion, in an apparent reference to the U.S.-Israeli war against Iran that began on February 28. That conflict, now in its fourth week, aims to prevent Tehran from developing nuclear weapons, a goal Iran denies pursuing. "Today's reality clearly demonstrates the legitimacy of our nation's strategic choice and decision to reject the enemies' sweet talk and permanently secure our nuclear arsenal," Kim...