North Korea says it is not bound by NPT at UN meeting

North Korea's Ambassador to the United Nations Kim Song speaks during a meeting of the UN General Assembly after China and Russia vetoed new sanctions on North Korea in the UN Security Council, at UN headquarters in New York in June 2022. (Reuters via Yonhap)

North Korea has rejected discussions of its nuclear weapons program at a UN meeting on the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, claiming it is “not bound” by the treaty.

Kim Song, North Korea’s ambassador to the United Nations, made the claim in a statement carried by the Korean Central News Agency on Thursday, after Pyongyang’s nuclear program was raised during the 11th NPT Review Conference underway at UN headquarters in New York.

“The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea is not bound by the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty under any circumstances,” Kim said, referring to North Korea by its official name.

Kim claimed North Korea’s possession of nuclear weapons is a legitimate exercise of its defensive rights, saying Pyongyang is “faithfully fulfilling” its obligations under its law on nuclear force policy and its constitution. The latter, he says, enshrines the country’s legal status as a nuclear weapons state.

He also denounced what he called attempts by the United States and some Western countries to take issue with North Korea’s nuclear possession, calling them “brigandish and shameless acts.”

Kim argued that efforts by the US and Western countries to force North Korea to comply with NPT obligations amount to a violation of the treaty's spirit and a disregard for the purposes and principles of international law.

He also accused the US and some other countries of violating their treaty obligations by neglecting nuclear disarmament duties, providing “extended deterrence” to nonnuclear states and transferring nuclear submarine technology.

The remarks appear to target recent security moves by Seoul and Washington, including their agreement to push for South Korea’s construction of nuclear-powered submarines.

Kim also criticized the NPT meeting, saying it had lost its original mission and become a venue for “malicious criticism” of sovereign states due to what he called the political intentions of the US and Western powers.

Adopted at the UN in 1968, the NPT is a key international treaty aimed at preventing the spread of nuclear weapons. North Korea declared its withdrawal from the treaty in 1993.

Parties to the treaty usually hold a review conference every five years to assess its implementation. The 11th NPT Review Conference began on April 27 and is being held for four weeks at UN headquarters.

During the conference, South Korea and France also co-hosted a meeting titled “The North Korean Nuclear Challenge: Preserving the Integrity of the NPT.”