North Korea declares it is not bound by nuclear treaty

North Korea Declares It Is Not Bound by Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty

North Korea’s top United Nations diplomat declared on Thursday that Pyongyang is not bound by the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty under any circumstances, reinforcing the country’s insistence on being recognized as a nuclear weapons state during a major international conference in New York.

Ambassador Kim Song, North Korea’s permanent representative to the UN, made the statement at the 11th NPT Review Conference, which is taking place at UN headquarters from April 27 to May 22. Kim criticized the United States and other Western nations for what he described as attempts to degrade the conference’s atmosphere by raising the issue of North Korea’s nuclear arsenal, according to state media outlet KCNA.devdiscourse

Reaffirming Nuclear Status

Kim stated that North Korea will not alter its stance as a nuclear weapons state based on external pressures or criticisms. The declaration follows North Korea’s 2003 announcement that it was withdrawing from the NPT, a move whose legal validity remains contested by the international community.nonproliferation

The statement aligns with a broader pattern of escalation from Pyongyang. In February, Kim Jong Un declared his country’s nuclear status “permanent and irreversible” during the Ninth Congress of the Workers’ Party of Korea. In March, North Korea revised its constitution to specify Kim Jong Un’s “command authority over nuclear forces” for the first time.chosun

South Korea and France Push Phased Approach

The declaration came as South Korea and France jointly hosted a side event at the NPT Review Conference on Monday, themed around “the North Korean Nuclear Challenge and the Preservation of the Integrity of the NPT”.koreatimes

Ha Wee-young, Director-General of the International Security Bureau at South Korea’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, emphasized a “step-by-step and pragmatic” approach to denuclearization, stating that “while tactics may change depending on the situation, the goal remains unchanged”. The approach envisions freezing North Korea’s nuclear program first, followed by reduction, and ultimately complete dismantlement.chosun

Sharon Squassoni, a research professor at George Washington University who attended the event, argued that in the short term, the focus should be on “risk reduction” to prevent nuclear war, and called on the United States, China, Russia, and North Korea to simultaneously ratify the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty.chosun

Wider International Pressure

The EU has urged North Korea to “engage in meaningful discussions with all relevant parties to build a basis for sustainable peace and security”. UN political affairs chief Rosemary DiCarlo told the Security Council in late April that North Korea’s continued pursuit of nuclear weapons and ballistic missile development “remain a matter of serious concern,” noting that Pyongyang had continued ballistic missile launches throughout 2025 and into early 2026.un

The NPT Review Conference, which runs through May 22, brings together 191 states parties to assess the treaty’s implementation since 2022.un