What did Unification Minister Chung Dong-young say about North Korea’s nuclear capabilities and denuclearization?

He said North Korea’s nuclear capabilities have grown 100,000 times over more than three decades and argued that the past approach of pursuing complete denuclearization is no longer sustainable. He said Pyongyang is still strengthening its nuclear programs at this very moment.

Why did Chung Dong-young say a new opportunity for North Korea talks is opening?

He pointed to Donald Trump’s renewed olive branch to Kim Jong-un and said a great transformation was setting in. Chung said that creates a window of opportunity for renewed engagement.

What four-way dialogue did Chung Dong-young want South Korea to pursue?

He urged Seoul to work toward a dialogue among South Korea, North Korea, the U.S. and China. He said the goal would be to turn the unstable armistice system into a peaceful one.

N. Korea's nuclear capabilities grow 100,000 times over 30 years: unification minister

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Summary

Unification Minister Chung Dong-young said Thursday in Seoul that North Korea’s nuclear capabilities have grown 100,000 times over the past 30 years and that pursuing complete denuclearization is no longer sustainable. He said Pyongyang is still expanding its nuclear programs and described a window of opportunity for a new phase of dialogue. Chung also urged Seoul to help foster U.S.-North Korea talks and a four-way dialogue involving the two Koreas, the U.S. and China.

Key Facts

Chung cited 90 grams of plutonium that North Korea reported to the International Atomic Energy Agency in 1992 and 57 nuclear weapons, a figure U.S. President Donald Trump specified last week.
He said North Korea’s nuclear capabilities have expanded 100,000 times since 1992.
Chung said South Korea should make all-out efforts to achieve a four-way dialogue among South Korea, North Korea, the U.S. and China.
He said such dialogue could eventually resolve the unstable armistice system into a peaceful one.

By Yonhap

Published Aug 27, 2026 3:53 pm KST

Unification Minister Chung Dong-young gives an opening speech during the Global Korea Forum 2026 held at a hotel in central Seoul, Thursday. Yonhap

Unification Minister Chung Dong-young said Thursday North Korea's nuclear capabilities have grown 100,000 times over the past 30 years, insisting that pursuing North Korea's complete denuclearization is no longer sustainable.

Chung made the remarks at a forum, as Pyongyang has continued to advance its nuclear capabilities and claimed its nuclear status is "irreversible," while ruling out denuclearization talks.

"It is evidently the harsh truth that the approach of pushing for the complete denuclearization (of North Korea) pursued in the past is no longer sustainable," Chung said in his opening speech at the annual Global Korea Forum.

He said North Korea's nuclear capabilities have expanded "100,000 times" over more than three decades since 1992, adding Pyongyang was strengthening its nuclear programs even at this "very moment."

To highlight North Korea's nuclear capabilities, Chung cited the 90 grams of plutonium that Pyongyang had reported to the International Atomic Energy Agency in 1992 and the 57 nuclear weapons, a figure that U.S. President Donald Trump specified last week as the North's nuclear arsenal for the first time.

On Trump's renewed olive branch to North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, Chung said a "great transformation" was setting in, noting that a "window of opportunity" is opening.

He also stressed the government's efforts to play an active role as the "pace maker" to help realize the U.S.-North Korea dialogue.

Chung said Seoul should put in all-out efforts to achieve a four-way dialogue between South and North Korea, the U.S. and China to eventually resolve the "unstable armistice system" into a peaceful one.

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