North Korea Fires Back at Trump, Says Has ‘Nothing More to Lose’
Pyongyang has hit back at US President Donald Trump over his “inappropriate” comments following its test at a satellite launch center, saying North Korea will not give in to Washington’s pressure since it already has “nothing to lose.”
Senior North Korean official, Kim Yong-chol, made the remarks in response to Trump’s tweet on Sunday, in which the US president said North Korean leader Kim Jong-un was “too smart and has far too much to lose, everything actually, if he acts in a hostile way.”
Trump also said, “He (Kim Jong-un) does not want to void his special relationship with the President of the United States or interfere with the US presidential election in November.”
The tweet came after the North announced on Sunday that it had carried out a “successful test of great significance” at its Sohae Satellite Launching Station.
Kim further called the US president an “impatient, old man,” saying that the North’s leader might change his view towards Trump if he continues making “inappropriate, dangerous” remarks.
“As (Trump) is such a heedless and erratic old man, the time when we cannot but call him a ‘dotard’ again may come,” Kim Yong-chol said.
“Trump has too many things that he does not know about (North Korea). We have nothing more to lose. Though the US may take away anything more from us, it can never remove the strong sense of self-respect, might and resentment against the US from us.”
Kim Yong-chol made two visits to the US last year and met with Trump. He also helped set up the North Korean leader’s summits with the American president.
Trump has repeatedly described his relationship with the North Korean leader as “successful” since they met for the first time 2018 in Singapore. The two met in another summit in Vietnam in an effort to make a denuclearization agreement, but the summit broke up without an agreement or even a joint statement.
The North has been under multiple rounds of harsh sanctions by the United Nations and the US over its nuclear and missile programs. In spite of those sanctions, it has taken several unilateral steps as signs of goodwill in the course of the diplomacy with the US.
Washington has, nevertheless, failed to offer any sanctions relief in return.
Back in October, the US president once again urged Kim in a Twitter message to “get the deal done,” and meet in a third summit with him. Kim, however, has ruled out any other “useless” summit with Trump, if he receives nothing in return.
Source: AFP
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