SEOUL, Korea, Republic Of 鈥� In North Korea鈥檚 first comments directed at the Biden administration, Kim Jong Un鈥檚 powerful sister on Tuesday warned the United States to 鈥渞efrain from causing a stink鈥� if it wants to 鈥渟leep in peace鈥� for the next four years.
Kim Yo Jong鈥檚 statement was issued as U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and
鈥淲e take this opportunity to warn the new U.S. administration trying hard to give off (gun) powder smell in our land,鈥� she said. 鈥淚f it wants to sleep in peace for coming four years, it had better refrain from causing a stink at its first step.鈥�
Kim Yo Jong, a senior official who handles inter-Korean affairs, also criticized the U.S. and South Korea for holding military exercises. She also said the North would consider abandoning a 2018 bilateral agreement on reducing military tensions and abolish a decades-old ruling party unit tasked to handle inter-Korean relations if it no longer had to
She said the North would also consider scrapping an office that handled South Korean tours to the North鈥檚 scenic Diamond Mountain, which Seoul suspended in 2008 after a North Korean guard fatally shot a South Korean tourist.
The North "will watch the future attitude and actions of the (South Korean) authorities,鈥� before determining whether to take exceptional measures against its rival, she said in her statement published in Pyongyang鈥檚 official Rodong Sinmun newspaper.
Challenges posed by North Korea鈥檚 nuclear arsenal and China鈥檚 growing influence loom large in the Biden administration鈥檚 first Cabinet-level trip abroad, part of a larger effort to bolster U.S. influence and clam concerns about the U.S. role in Asia following four years of President Donald Trump鈥檚 鈥淎merica first鈥� approach.
A senior official from the Biden administration said Saturday that U.S. officials have tried to reach out to North Korea through multiple channels since last month, but had yet to receive a response. The official was not authorized to publicly discuss the diplomatic outreach and spoke on condition of anonymity.
鈥淭his is Kim Yo Jong continuing to be the tip of the wedge North Korea tries to drive between South Korea and its U.S. ally,鈥� said Leif-Eric Easley, a professor of international studies at Ewha University in Seoul. 鈥淣orth Korea鈥檚 latest threats mean the allies have precious little time to
Biden鈥檚 presidency begins as Kim Jong Un faces perhaps the toughest moment of his nine-year rule. His country鈥檚 battered economy has decayed further amid pandemic border closures while his summits with Trump failed to lift crippling sanctions.
While Kim in recent political speeches has vowed to strengthen his nuclear weapons program, he also has said the fate of U.S. relations depends on Washington鈥檚 actions.
The 2018 military agreement, which had been the most tangible outcome from the three summits between Kim and South Korean President Moon Jae-in, requires the countries to take steps to reduce conventional military threats, such as establishing border buffers in land and sea and no-fly zones.
But inter-Korean relations have lain in ruin amid the stalemate in the nuclear diplomacy between Washington and Pyongyang.
The South Korean and U.S militaries began annual military exercises last week that continue through Thursday. The drills are command post exercises and computerized simulation and don鈥檛 involve field training. They said they held the downsized drills after reviewing factors like the status of COVID-19 and diplomatic efforts to resume the nuclear talks with North Korea.
But Kim Yo Jong said even the smaller drills are an act of hostility toward the North. In the past, the North has often responded with U.S.-South Korea drills with missile tests.
鈥�(War drills) and hostility can never go with dialogue and
Boo Seung-chan, a spokesperson from South Korea鈥檚
Kim Tong-Hyung, The Associated Press
