Office of the President Responds to North Korea's Claim of Denuclearization's End: "Denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula Is the Consistent Goal of the International Community"

"South Korea-U.S. Extended Deterrence Cooperation Is a Government Responsibility"
"Fully Aligned with International Norms Including the NPT"

The Office of the President stated on June 14 that, in response to a spokesperson for North Korea's Ministry of Foreign Affairs claiming that the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula is a matter that has been conclusively resolved—targeting, among other things, the South Korea-U.S. Nuclear Consultative Group (NCG) meeting—"Denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula remains a consistent goal of the international community, as reaffirmed by multiple United Nations Security Council resolutions."

President Lee Jae-myung is delivering a commemorative speech at the 'Special Mass for Peace and Solidarity' held at St. Paul Outside the Walls Basilica in Rome, Italy, on June 14, 2026 (local time). Photo by Yonhap News

A senior official from the Office of the President commented on the North Korean spokesperson's statement the same day, saying, "Under the vision of peaceful coexistence and joint growth, the government is making efforts to realize a Korean Peninsula free of war and nuclear weapons."

The official emphasized, "The cooperation between South Korea and the United States on extended deterrence is a duty of a responsible government to protect the lives and safety of its people," adding, "This is fully consistent with the international nonproliferation regime and norms, including the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT)."

Previously, a spokesperson for North Korea's Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a statement through the Korean Central News Agency in which they criticized the recent South Korea-U.S. NCG and U.S.-Japan Extended Deterrence Dialogue (EDD), arguing that discussions on denuclearization can no longer take place. North Korea condemned the extended deterrence consultations between South Korea, the United States, and Japan as a "nuclear war rehearsal," and insisted that its status as a nuclear-armed state is irreversible.

On June 11, South Korea and the United States held the 6th NCG meeting in Seoul to discuss measures for extended deterrence cooperation in response to North Korea's advancing nuclear and missile capabilities. In a joint press statement, both sides reaffirmed that the denuclearization of North Korea is their shared objective, and reiterated the U.S. commitment to provide extended deterrence to South Korea by utilizing the full range of its capabilities, including nuclear weapons. The meeting also included the signing of the South Korea-U.S. NCG security guidelines.

The stance expressed by the Office of the President on this day signals that the government remains firm in its refusal to accept North Korea's self-proclaimed status as a nuclear state, while simultaneously pursuing the Lee Jaemyung administration's policy of peaceful coexistence and strengthening deterrence within the South Korea-U.S. alliance. United Nations Security Council resolutions have consistently called on North Korea to abandon its nuclear program in a complete, verifiable, and irreversible manner, and the NPT regime maintains as a core principle the prohibition of nuclear weapons acquisition by non-nuclear-weapon states.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.