North Korean official said Biden’s speech to Congress depicts his plan to keep discharging the ‘hostile policy’ around the nation
National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said in response to criticism from Pyongyang by declaring that President Biden’s advance toward North Korea is not meant to be hostile but wants a complete denuclearization.
Sullivan responded on ABC’s “This Week” on Sunday, later on after North Korean official Kwon Jong Gun released a statement arguing that Biden’s speech to Congress “reflects his intent to keep enforcing the hostile policy toward” North Korea and warning that the U.S. “will find itself in a very grave situation.”
“Our policy toward North Korea is not aimed at hostility, it’s aimed at solutions,” Sullivan declared to ABC News Chief Global Affairs Correspondent Martha Raddatz. “It’s aimed at ultimately achieving the complete denuclearization of the Korean peninsula. We’re prepared to engage in diplomacy towards that ultimate objective, but work on practical measures that can help us make progress along the way toward that goal.”
“We believe, rather than all for all or nothing for nothing, a more calibrated, practical measured approach stands the best chance of actually moving the ball down the field towards reducing the challenge posed by North Korea’s nuclear program,” Sullivan added.
Early in the day on Sunday, North Korea released several statements picking out the United States and its ally, South Korea, Reuters reported. One statement, issued by state news agency KCNA, advised that the U.S. was “girding itself up for an all-out showdown” by condemning North Korea’s human rights record.
Kwon Jong Gun, director-general of the Department of U.S. Affairs at North Korea’s Foreign Ministry, cited Biden’s remarks during his initial speech to Congress on Wednesday, when the president stated North Korea and Iran’s nuclear programs were considered a threat and would be met with “diplomacy and stern deterrence.”
“His statement clearly reflects his intent to keep enforcing the hostile policy toward the DPRK as it had been done by the U.S. for over half a century,” Kwon said, and now that Biden’s approach is clear, North Korea “will be compelled to press for corresponding measures, and with time the U.S. will find itself in a very grave situation.”
This takes place after the White House initially approved on Friday that the Biden administration has concluded a months-long evaluation of North Korean policy and will plan a different way than former President Donald Trump in an attempt to end North Korea’s nuclear and ballistic missile program.
“I can confirm that we’ve completed our DPRK policy review, which was thorough, rigorous and inclusive,” White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said Friday, referring to the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.
The Washington Post first stated on Friday that the Biden administration wants to find a “middle” ground between Trump’s grand bargain strategy where he had face-to-face diplomacy with North Korean leader Kim Jon Un and former President Barack Obama’s approach in which he delayed diplomacy until North Korea transformed its behavior.
Psaki said Biden’s team talked things over with outside experts and officials from “several previous administrations” to build on lessons learned.
“Our goal remains the complete denuclearization of the Korean peninsula, with a clear understanding that the efforts of the past four administrations have not achieved this objective,” Psaki told reporters aboard Air Force One. “Our policy will not focus on achieving a grand bargain, nor will it rely on strategic patience.”
Psaki said the Biden approach will “explore diplomacy” with North Korea in an attempt to make “practical” progress toward accomplishing denuclearization and expanding the security of the United States and its allies.
The new approach is immediate, as Biden is planning to welcome South Korean President Moon Jae-in to the White House on May twenty first to highlight their “ironclad alliance,” the White House said.
The Washington Post initially stated Friday that the Biden administration is going to pursue a moderate agreement with North Korea that will lead to full denuclearization. Biden was informed on the plan last week by Sullivan, Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and Gen. Mark A. Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the outlet reported.
The Biden administration will not get rid of all Trump’s work, the Post stated. They’ll keep in place Trump’s 2018 Singapore summit agreement in which Kim agreed to work toward the “complete denuclearization of the Korean peninsula” in return for the U.S. giving “security guarantees” to North Korea. Both sides also promised to “build a lasting and stable peace regime.”
Fox News’ Marisa Schultz contributed to this report.