In the past, they said "Denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula," but now it's "Advancement of Nuclear Forces"

Records Reveal North Korea Once Advocated
for a Nuclear-Free Korean Peninsula

As North Korea continues to mention the advancement of its nuclear capabilities day after day, records of past instances where North Korea pressured South Korea by advocating for denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula have been found in inter-Korean dialogue documents.

On the 13th, the Ministry of Unification disclosed documents from the 6th Inter-Korean Talks containing such content. The documents total 2,266 pages and cover inter-Korean talks in political, economic, and sports fields from September 1984 to July 1990. During this period, the two Koreas held five economic talks, two preliminary contacts for parliamentary talks, three IOC-mediated Lausanne inter-Korean sports talks, and eight preliminary meetings for high-level inter-Korean talks.

On December 31, 1986, North Korean leader Kim Il-sung stated in the opening speech of the 1st session of the 8th Supreme People's Assembly, “The United States has specially emphasized South Korea’s military strategic position, rapidly increased U.S. military forces in South Korea, and massively brought in nuclear weapons, transforming South Korean territory into a nuclear base.” He added, “Over 1,000 nuclear weapons have already been deployed in South Korea, with various nuclear delivery systems including the Lance missile continuously introduced, and large-scale nuclear storage facilities newly constructed.”

Kim Il-sung also said, “We do not wish for the extermination of our nation, nor can we allow the homeland to become a battlefield for America’s nuclear war,” and “We strongly insist on making the Korean Peninsula a nuclear-free and war-risk-free zone, a peace zone, as soon as possible.”

The 1st session of the 8th Supreme People's Assembly, where Kim Il-sung mentioned denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, was held at a time when China, the Soviet Union, and Eastern Europe were beginning to enter a new phase of reform and opening. North Korea also faced a new crossroads at this meeting. In Asia, Vietnam introduced the reform and opening policy called ‘Doi Moi’ in 1986, and China accelerated its opening by hosting the 11th Asian Games in 1990.

Through the 1986 Supreme People's Assembly, North Korea set the direction of the state with Kim Il-sung’s policy speech titled ‘For the Complete Victory of Socialism,’ which was replaced by the New Year’s address in 1987.

Meanwhile, after South Korea established diplomatic relations with the Soviet Union on September 30, 1990, all tactical nuclear weapons deployed by the U.S. Forces Korea in the South were withdrawn from the Korean Peninsula in 1991, achieving denuclearization. Subsequently, on November 8, 1991, then-President Roh Tae-woo declared the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula. In contrast, North Korea withdrew from the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) on March 12, 1993, and intensified its nuclear development, which had been ongoing since the past. Later, in 2021, North Korea declared the ‘completion of national nuclear forces.’

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