Yun first proposed what he called a “bold plan” to exchange economic cooperation to end North Korea’s nuclear program during his inauguration speech in May. He has since continued to raise the idea, repeating the offer this week. In a speech on Monday, he said his government would implement a large-scale food program, provide aid for power generation, boost agriculture and other measures to modernize ports, trade routes, hospitals and the economy of North Korea in exchange for denuclearization. But in the KCNA report, Kim Yo Jong rejected the proposal and launched personal attacks on the South Korean President. “Believing that the ‘economic cooperation’ exchange plan for our honor, nuclear, is Yoon’s big dream, hope and plan, we realized that it is really simple and still childish,” Kim Yo Jong said, according to with KCNA. We make it clear that we will not sit face to face with him.” South Korea’s Unification Ministry responded on Friday, expressing “deep regret” over Kim Yo Jong’s “disrespectful comments.” He said North Korea “distorts our ideas and has indicated its intention to continue nuclear development rather than respond to the bold initiative,” adding that such a stance would not only threaten peace on the Korean peninsula but worsen its own economic situation. of North Korea. In the KCNA report, Kim Yo Jong also said South Korea had identified the wrong location for the missiles North Korea fired on Wednesday and questioned why the South and the United States had not released their analysis of the weapons. The reclusive hermit kingdom fired two cruise missiles from the coastal city of Onchon into waters off its west coast on Wednesday, South Korea’s military said. However, Kim Yo Jong claimed that the test was conducted from the Kumsong Bridge in the city of Anju, located in South Pyongan Province, just north of the capital Pyongyang. He did not give further details about the test. Wednesday’s test marks North Korea’s 18th missile launch this year, according to CNN’s count. In comparison, the hermit kingdom only conducted four tests in 2020 and eight in 2021. Tensions between the two Koreas have risen this year, with US and intelligence agencies warning that North Korea appears to be preparing for a nuclear test — its first in five years.
