Opinion | As its deadline for ‘bold decision’ from US looms, North Korea is ramping up the rhetoric again

Any end-of-year deal between Washington and Pyongyang is unlikely to be substantial. And if there isn’t one? Expect more of the same

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North Korea’s latest missile test set off an exchange of rhetoric, this time between Pyongyang and Tokyo. Photo: EPA-EFE

Published: 5:00pm, 8 Dec 2019Updated: 10:17pm, 8 Dec 2019

North Korea’s missile testing seems to continue apace, yet not according to North Korea’s definition. Its recent missile test set off a conflict of rhetoric not between Washington and Pyongyang, but Pyongyang and Tokyo. Following Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s condemnation of the latest ballistic missile launch, North Korean state media denounced Abe as “an underwit”, “the most stupid man ever known in history”, and a “perfect imbecile”.

The reason? In Pyongyang’s eyes, the November 28 launch was not of a missile per se, but rather of a “super-large multiple launch rocket system”. Crucially, North Korea made a blatant threat to Japan, saying how “Abe may see what a real ballistic missile is in the not distant future”, right “under his nose”.

Yet, put to one side the typically bombastic rhetoric and denigration of North Korean political statements, and an interesting picture emerges. This instance does not mark the first time that Pyongyang has couched its missile launches in alternative language, given how the UN Security Council explicitly condemns any missile launches as a firm violation of resolutions.

Who can forget when North Korea stated in no unclear terms that it had launched a “satellite” – using the same technology as for ballistic missiles – in December 2012? While the launch directly contravened UN Security Council Resolution 1874 – demanding that North Korea refrain from conducting “any launch using ballistic missile technology” – in Pyongyang’s eyes, satellite launches are not within the remit of the UN Security Council resolutions.

In Pyongyang’s eyes, the international community should get its nose out of its domestic affairs.

North Korean media denounced Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe as a “perfect imbecile” after he condemned the latest ballistic missile launch. Photo: AP

Fast-forward to 2019, and much of the same rhetorical debate remains. Talks between Washington and Pyongyang, which restarted in October, have borne little fruit. North Korea is not afraid to follow through on its commitments.

Its leader Kim Jong-un’s end-of-year deadline to US President Donald Trump, as he waits for Washington to take a “bold decision”, is approaching. At the beginning of this month, North Korean foreign vice-minister Ri Thae-song made clear that time was running out, and that “it is entirely up to the US what Christmas gift it will select to get”. So, what are the options?

.css-1mniedq{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;} Any end-of-year deal between Washington and Pyongyang is unlikely to be substantial. And if there isn’t one? Expect more of the same

Any end-of-year deal between Washington and Pyongyang is unlikely to be substantial. And if there isn’t one? Expect more of the same