Kim Yo Jong, the influential sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, sharply condemned the Association of Southeast Asian Nations on Monday for urging a denuclearised Korean peninsula, dismissing the bloc's stance as "stupid and foolish."
ASEAN expressed "grave concern" last week at its annual regional forum over North Korea's nuclear weapons programme and called for dialogue to achieve lasting peace. In a statement carried by the Korean Central News Agency, Kim Yo Jong accused the forum of echoing Washington's hostile posture and warned ASEAN against being "misused as a paid mouthpiece of the United States."
She reiterated that Pyongyang's nuclear programme is a non-negotiable red line, a position consistent with North Korea's 2023 decision to enshrine its nuclear-armed status in the constitution. Pyongyang has continued to advance its nuclear and ballistic missile programmes despite United Nations Security Council sanctions.