NKorea Kim: Ready for US Confrontation 06/18 06:13

   

   SEOUL, South Korea (AP) -- North Korean leader Kim Jong Un ordered his 
government to be prepared for both dialogue and confrontation with the Biden 
administration -- but more for confrontation -- state media reported Friday, 
days after the United States and others urged the North to abandon its nuclear 
program and return to talks.

   Kim's statement indicates he'll likely push to strengthen his nuclear 
arsenal and increase pressure on Washington to give up what North Korea 
considers a hostile policy toward the North, though he'll also prepare for 
talks to resume, some experts say.

   During an ongoing ruling party meeting Thursday, Kim analyzed in detail the 
policy tendencies of the U.S. under President Joe Biden and clarified steps to 
be taken in relations with Washington, the Korean Central News Agency said. It 
did not specify the steps.

   Kim "stressed the need to get prepared for both dialogue and confrontation, 
especially to get fully prepared for confrontation in order to protect the 
dignity of our state" and ensure national security, it said.

   In 2018-19, Kim held a series of summits with then-President Donald Trump to 
discuss North Korea's advancing nuclear arsenal. But the negotiations fell 
apart after Trump rejected Kim's calls for extensive sanctions relief in return 
for a partial surrender of his nuclear capability.

   Biden's administration has worked to formulate a new approach on North 
Korea's nuclear program that it describes as "calibrated and practical." 
Details of his North Korea policy haven't been publicized, but U.S. officials 
have suggested Biden will seek a middle ground between Trump's direct meetings 
with Kim and former President Barack Obama's "strategic patience" to curb Kim's 
nuclear program.

   Earlier this week, leaders of the Group of Seven wealthy nations issued a 
statement calling for the complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula and 
"the verifiable and irreversible abandonment" of North Korea's nuclear and 
missile programs. They called on North Korea to engage and resume dialogue.

   Sung Kim, the top U.S. official on North Korea, is to visit Seoul on 
Saturday for a trilateral meeting with South Korean and Japanese officials. His 
travel emphasizes the importance of three-way cooperation in working toward 
complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, the State Department said.

   Kim Jong Un has recently threatened to enlarge his nuclear arsenal and build 
high-tech weapons targeting the U.S. mainland if Washington refuses to abandon 
its hostile policy toward North Korea.

   In March, Kim's military performed its first short-range ballistic missile 
tests in a year. But North Korea is still maintaining a moratorium on 
long-range missile and nuclear tests in an indication that Kim still wants to 
keep prospects for diplomacy alive.

   Kwak Gil Sup, head of One Korea Center, a website specializing in North 
Korea affairs, wrote on Facebook that Kim's statement suggested he's taking a 
two-track approach of bolstering military capability and preparing for talks. 
But he said Kim will more likely focus on boosting military strength and 
repeating his demand for the U.S. to withdraw its hostile policy, rather than 
hastily returning to talks.

   Kim said last week North Korea's military must stay on high alert to defend 
national security.

   Analyst Cheong Seong-Chang at the private Sejong Institute in South Korea 
said North Korea will likely return to talks but won't accept a call for 
immediate, complete denuclearization. He said North Korea may accede to a 
proposal to freeze its atomic program and partially reduce its nuclear arsenal 
in phased steps if the Biden administration relaxes sanctions and suspends its 
regular military drills with South Korea.

   Cha Duck Chul, a deputy spokesman at South Korea's Unification Ministry, 
said it's closely monitoring the North's ongoing political meeting and wants to 
reemphasize the best way to achieve peace on the Korean Peninsula is through 
dialogue.

   In Beijing, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijiang called for 
renewed dialogue between North Korea and the U.S., saying that "We believe that 
the Korean Peninsula situation is facing a new round of tension."

   Kim called the ruling Workers' Party's Central Committee meeting taking 
place this week to review efforts to rebuild the economy, which has been 
severely crippled by pandemic border closings, mismanagement amid the U.S.-led 
sanctions, and storm damage to crops and infrastructure last year.

   On Tuesday, Kim opened the meeting by warning of potential food shortages, 
urging officials to find ways to boost agricultural production because the 
country's food situation "is now getting tense." He also urged the country to 
brace for extended COVID-19 restrictions, suggesting North Korea would extend 
its border closure and other steps despite the stress on its economy.