Despite Detente, North Korea Warns U.S. Against ‘Stupid Behavior’

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North Korean state media warned America against “stupid behavior” in a piece Thursday after claiming that the U.S. has boasted of the efficacy of economic sanctions.

In an editorial in the state propaganda outlet Rodong Sinmun, the author accused the U.S. of “playing down the historic significance of the inter-Korean summit at Panmunjom” between Kim Jong-un and South Korean leader Moon Jae-in by claiming it is the result of tough economic sanctions imposed on the regime over the past year.

“The world people are regarding such senseless remarks and behavior as the revelation of uneasiness and impatience of those who fear the anti-DPRK sanctions and pressure might break into pieces in a moment by the trend of the international community actively supporting the summit and declaration,” the editorial reads.

“It is clear that those calling for ‘tightened and sustained sanctions and pressure’ will not be welcomed wherever they go but meet failure and disgrace only, today when the improvement of the inter-Korean relations and détente and peace on the Korean peninsula have become an irresistible trend,” it continues.

“The U.S. is persistently clinging to the hostile policy toward the DPRK, misleading the public opinion,” the column reads. “Such behavior may result in endangering the security of its own country.”

Over the past year, the U.S. and other regional allies including Japan and South Korea have imposed more sanctions against the pariah state as it aggressively expanded its nuclear capabilities.

The warning was published a day after U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo visited Pyongyang for further bilateral discussions with Kim Jong-un, where he also secured the release of three Americans held as prisoners.

“I had productive meetings in Pyongyang with Chairman Kim Jong-un and made progress,” Pompeo wrote following the meeting. “I’m delighted to bring home three Americans.”

State media reported that “Supreme Leader Kim Jong Un warmly greeted Mike Pompeo and sincerely congratulated him on his recent official assumption as secretary of State.”

Such warnings are typical of North Korean state media, who over the past years have made dozens of ludicrous claims and threats, such as that Trump suffers from a “nasty smell” and “should be urgently sent to a lunatics asylum,” as well as claiming that he had been “sentenced to death by the Korean people.”

Before the recent de-escalation of tensions, state media also regularly published apocalyptic threats against the U.S. and its allies in the region over the prospect of a nuclear war.

Amid an ongoing thaw between North Korea and the United States, President Donald Trump confirmed that he will also meet with Kim Jong-un in Singapore on 12th June, which Trump has claimed could be a “very special moment for World Peace.”

Follow Ben Kew on Facebook, Twitter at @ben_kew, or email him at bkew@breitbart.com.

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