North Korea Says Nuclear Status ‘Will Not Change’

PYONGYANG: (Web Desk) – North Korea’s envoy to the United Nations has declared that Pyongyang will not be bound by the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), insisting that external pressure cannot alter the country’s status as a nuclear-armed state.

According to North Korean state media, Ambassador Kim Jong made the remarks during a review meeting of the NPT at the United Nations, accusing the United States and its allies of questioning North Korea’s sovereign rights.

“The status of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea as a nuclear-armed state will not change based on external rhetorical claims or unilateral desires,” Kim Song said in a statement carried by the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).

He further stated that North Korea would “not be bound by the Non-Proliferation Treaty under any circumstances whatsoever,” adding that the country’s nuclear status has been formally incorporated into its constitution.

North Korea first threatened to withdraw from the NPT in 1993 and officially exited the treaty in 2003. Since then, the country has conducted six nuclear tests and is believed to possess dozens of nuclear warheads, leading to extensive international sanctions.

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The NPT, which came into force in 1970, aims to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons and promote global nuclear disarmament. Almost all countries are signatories to the treaty, with exceptions including North Korea, India, Pakistan, and Israel.

During the ongoing review conference, António Guterres warned that the spirit of the treaty was weakening due to rising global tensions and growing nuclear risks.

According to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), the world’s nine nuclear-armed states possessed more than 12,000 nuclear warheads as of January 2025, with the United States and Russia accounting for nearly 90 percent of the global stockpile.

North Korea has repeatedly described its nuclear programme as “irreversible” and has vowed to continue strengthening its military capabilities amid deepening ties with Russia following Moscow’s war in Ukraine.