North Korea is not interested in any policy or proposal for reconciliation with South Korea, the powerful sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un said on Sunday, in Pyongyang’s first reaction to peace initiatives by the South’s new president.
Kim Yo Jong, a senior official in North Korea’s ruling party who is believed to be her brother’s spokesperson, said South Korean President Lee Jae-myung’s pledge to adhere to the security alliance between Seoul and the United States shows he is no different from his predecessor, who took a hostile approach.
“If South Korea expects all consequences of (its actions) to be undone by a few sentimental words, there can be no greater miscalculation,” Kim said in comments carried by the official KCNA news agency.
Lee, who took office on June 4 after winning an early election following the impeachment of former president Yoon Suk Yeol over a failed attempt to impose martial law, had pledged to improve ties with Pyongyang, which had hit their worst level in years.
As part of measures to de-escalate tensions, Lee halted loudspeaker broadcasts of anti-North Korean propaganda across the border and blocked activists from launching leaflets that had angered Pyongyang.
Kim, the North Korean official, said these actions were merely a retreat from “vicious” South Korean activities that “should not have been taken in the first place.”
“In other words, it is something that is not worth our evaluation,” she said.
“We once again make clear the official stand that no matter what policies Seoul adopts or what proposals it makes, we are not interested in them and we will neither sit with South Korea nor have anything to discuss,” she added.
