North Korea warns it could destroy South if threatened, but leaves door open for US dialogue

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — North Korean leader Kim Jong Un claimed his nuclear-armed country could “completely destroy” South Korea if its security were threatened, reiterating his refusal to engage with Seoul, state media said Thursday. However, he left the door open to dialogue with Washington as he concluded a ruling party congress outlining his policy goals for the next five years.

State media said that Kim also called for developing new weapons systems to bolster his nuclear-armed military, including intercontinental ballistic missiles that could be launched from underwater and an expanded arsenal of tactical nuclear weapons, such as artillery and short-range missiles, targeting South Korea.

He said the accelerated development of his nuclear and missile program “permanently cemented” the country’s status as a nuclear weapons state, and called for the United States to discard what he perceives as “hostile" policies toward the North as a precondition for resuming long-stalled dialogue.

The Workers’ Party congress, which began last Thursday in Pyongyang, comes as Kim carves out a more forceful regional presence, leveraging his expanding military nuclear program and a growing alignment with Moscow that have deepened his standoffs with Washington and Seoul.

The official Korean Central News Agency said the North staged a military parade at the capital city on Wednesday as it wrapped up the congress, which Kim previously held in 2016 and 2021.

Kim’s comments at the congress were widely anticipated as he has been issuing increasingly hard-line views toward South Korea since 2024, when he discarded the North’s long-standing goal of a peaceful reunification between the war-divided Koreas and declared the South as a permanent enemy. But analysts expected Kim to take a more measured approach toward Washington to preserve the possibility of future dialogue, with the long-term aim of securing U.S. sanctions relief and tacit recognition as a nuclear state.

Kim has recently been prioritizing Russia in his foreign policy, sending thousands of troops and large amounts of military equipment to support Moscow’s war in Ukraine, possibly in exchange for aid and military technology. But it would make sense to keep his options open as the war in Ukraine could wind down, potentially making North Korea less valuable to Moscow, experts say.

In a report wrapping up the congress, Kim said his government was maintaining the “toughest stance” against Washington, but added there was “no reason we cannot get along” with the Americans if they withdrew their supposedly "hostile policy” toward the North. North Korea often uses the term to describe U.S.-led pressure and sanctions over Kim’s nuclear ambitions. His comments aligned with North Korea’s previous position calling for Washington to abandon its demands for the North’s denuclearization as a precondition for resuming talks.

North Korea has repeatedly rejected Washington and Seoul’s calls to resume diplomacy aimed at winding down its nuclear program, which derailed in 2019 following the collapse of Kim’s second summit with U.S. President Donald Trump during his first term.

The prospects of U.S.-North Korea relations “depends entirely on the U.S. attitude,” Kim said. “Whether it's peaceful coexistence or permanent confrontation, we are ready for either, and the choice is not ours to make.”