North Korea, Absent from UN General Assembly Delegation for 5 Consecutive Years

Ambassador Kim Sung, North Korea's Permanent Representative to the UN, Expected to Deliver Speech

It has been revealed that North Korea has not sent government officials to the UN General Assembly general debate for five consecutive years.

According to UN officials on the 18th (local time), North Korea's speech at the general debate, where heads of state from various countries deliver speeches, is scheduled as the 10th speaker on the last day of the General Assembly, the 26th, at 10 a.m.

The order of speeches at the general debate, which begins on the 19th, gives priority to heads of state and government leaders, while foreign ministers and ambassadors speak later. The fact that North Korea's keynote speech is scheduled for the last day indicates that the speaker is at the ambassador level or below. Accordingly, it is expected that Kim Song, North Korea's ambassador to the UN, will deliver the general debate speech again this year, following last year.

The last time North Korea sent a delegation to the UN headquarters in New York was at the 73rd UN General Assembly in 2018. At that time, former North Korean Foreign Minister Ri Yong-ho spoke, stating, "There will never be a unilateral denuclearization." He also used harsh expressions such as "mentally ill" and "gambler" to criticize then U.S. President Donald Trump.

Meanwhile, President Yoon Suk-yeol, who arrived in New York on the same day, is reported to deliver his speech as the 18th speaker on the morning of the second day of the general debate, the 20th.

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