North Korean leader Kim Jong Un declared on Sunday that his nation will "never lay down our nuclear weapons," despite heaping praise on US President Donald Trump.
His remarks were delivered during a parliamentary session and quoted by Bloomberg.
"The world knows well what the US does after it forces others to give up their nuclear program and disarm," said Kim.
Despite his hostile rhetoric toward American policy, the North Korean leader offered a surprisingly personal olive branch to President Donald Trump.
"Personally, I still have good memories of the current US President Trump," Kim said. He added that there is "no reason not to face the US" if it abandons its demand for denuclearization and "accepts reality."
Kim’s comments come after Trump recently expressed a desire to meet with Kim this year, highlighting a "very good relationship" between the two.
During Trump’s first presidency from 2017 to 2021, he met Kim three times—in Singapore, Hanoi, and at the Korean border. Despite the historic meetings, their diplomacy yielded no tangible results.
North Korea upped its rhetoric in 2024 and staged dozens of launches of missiles. In early November, North Korea launched a ballistic missile toward the East Sea, just days after it announced it had tested an intercontinental ballistic missile, prompting condemnation from the South, the United States and Japan.
Since the conclusion of Trump’s first term, Kim has maintained a confrontational stance against the United States and South Korea.
In January, Kim urged an expansion of the country's nuclear capabilities. Later, the North Korean leader personally oversaw the test-launch of a strategic cruise missile and ordered full preparedness for nuclear strikes.