North Korea Calls Denuclearization a "Pipe Dream," Protests Agenda for South Korea-China Summit

Vice Foreign Minister's Statement Ahead of Summit Implies Pressure on China

President Lee Jae-myung in conversation with Chinese President Xi Jinping (Gyeongju=Yonhap News) Special Coverage Team = President Lee Jae-myung is seen in conversation with Chinese President Xi Jinping at the 2025 Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Summit gala dinner held at the Lahan Select Hotel in Gyeongju, Gyeongbuk Province, on October 31, 2025. 2025.10.31 photo@yna.co.kr

North Korea has reacted angrily to the announcement that denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula was discussed as an agenda item for the upcoming South Korea-China summit, calling it a "pipe dream."

In a statement released on October 31, Vice Foreign Minister Pak Myong-ho stated that "even if we drone on about denuclearization a hundred, a thousand, ten thousand times, we will patiently show that it is an absolutely unattainable 'pipe dream'," according to the Korean Central News Agency on November 1.

He pointed out that "the spokesperson for the South Korean presidential office announced that agenda consultations were held to discuss the issues of denuclearization and peace on the Korean Peninsula at the South Korea-China (South Korea-China) summit," adding that "South Korea attempts to bring up the issue of denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula whenever it has the chance."

He further criticized, "South Korea still does not understand that attempting to deny the nuclear-weapon state status of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea and still uttering the delusion of achieving denuclearization itself is a naked display of its own lack of sense."

Previously, Presidential Office Spokesperson Kang Yu-jeong stated at a press briefing that "both President Lee Jae-myung and Chinese President Xi Jinping, under the motto that people's livelihoods are most important, will adopt a theme for solving livelihood issues," and added that "as an extension of livelihood issues, agenda consultations were held to discuss the issues of denuclearization and peace on the Korean Peninsula."

North Korea's issuance of a statement by its Vice Foreign Minister ahead of the South Korea-China summit, while a reaction to the South Korean presidential office's announcement, also appears to be intended to pressure China ahead of the summit.

In May last year, the spokesperson for the North Korean Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a statement regarding a joint declaration from the South Korea-China-Japan summit that mentioned denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, calling it "reckless interference in internal affairs" and stating it was "condemned and rejected." Yonhap News