Seoul, South Korea (CNN)North Korean leader Kim Jong Un affirmed his apparent commitment to denuclearization during an annual New Year’s address Tuesday, but warned that he may need to pursue “a new way” if the United States continues to make “one-sided demands” of Pyongyang.
In a wide ranging, 30-minute speech, Kim said that relations with Washington would progress at a “fast speed” if the US engages in some form of give-and-take, adding that he was ready to meet with US President Donald Trump at any time.
“I’ll endeavor towards a result that will be welcomed by the international community,” Kim said of the potential second meeting between the two leaders.
North Korea, however, would have “no choice but to defend our country’s sovereignty and supreme interest, and find a new way to settle peace on our peninsula,” if the US “misinterprets our people’s patience, and makes one-sided demands and continues down the path of sanctions and pressure on our republic.”
Kim did not elaborate on what he meant by “new path.”
The annual speech, essentially North Korea’s version of the US State of the Union, is intended mostly for a domestic audience. Though it is dominated by issues viewed as mundane by international observers, it offers key clues into Kim’s thinking and Pyongyang’s plans for the upcoming year.
This year’s address was marked by a change in appearance, with Kim choosing to deliver the speech sitting in a leather armchair in a study with paintings of his father and grandfather in clear view behind him. Last year, he delivered the speech behind a lectern.
In keeping with the last two years, Kim opted to wear a Western suit with pinstripes and a gray tie, eschewing the collarless formal attire he usually wears in public.
“His overarching message was confident, normal, sophisticated … reminiscent of the feel as the Singapore summit setting, wearing a suit and tie,” said Duyeon Kim, an adjunct fellow at the Center for a New American Security.
“But he still sent a very firm word of caution, bordering a nuanced threat, that if Washington doesn’t keep its Singapore promise and continues with sanctions, then he has Plan B in mind and will go his separate way. He’s exuding confidence that his country isn’t hung up over the US, that they can still prosper without Washington.”