North Korea labels Lee 'hypocrite' over denuke remarks

North Korea denounced South Korean President Lee Jae-myung as a “hypocrite afflicted with denuclearization delusion” after he reaffirmed the goal of a nuclear-free Korean Peninsula at the South Korea-U.S. summit. While issuing a direct personal attack on Lee by name, Pyongyang did not issue a separate statement regarding U.S. President Donald Trump.

In a commentary released on Aug. 27, North Korea’s Korean Central News Agency said, “South Korea’s Lee Jae-myung has revealed his true colors as a hypocrite,” adding that “He even gravely insulted us by calling us a ‘poor but fierce neighbor’ and babbled about the absurd idea of denuclearization.” The remarks referred to Lee’s comments at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, D.C. following the summit, with Pyongyang criticizing him by name.

North Korea also expressed displeasure at the three-step denuclearization roadmap outlined by Lee, which calls for freezing, reducing, and ultimately dismantling its nuclear arsenal. “Our position of never relinquishing our nuclear weapons is immutable,” the Korean Central News Agency said. “Lee Jae-myung must understand that clinging to his denuclearization delusion like a hereditary disease benefits neither South Korea nor anyone else.” The statement made no reference to President Trump, who said at the summit that he would meet North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.


Oh-Hyuk Kwon hyuk@donga.com