Kim Jong-un was 'desperate to get rid of his nuclear weapons'
Kim Jong-un was reportedly 'desperate to get rid of his nuclear weapons and did not want his daughter's generation to live with the burden' of nukes,' claimed South Korea's former leader.
Moon Jae-in, who facilitated the historic summits between Kim and former US President Donald Trump, revealed in a new memoir that the North Korean leader 'repeatedly' and 'desperately' made clear that Pyongyang did not plan to use its weapons and expressed frustration over the global mistrust.
Moon also added that the tyrant dictator surprisingly 'mentioned that he has a daughter and doesn't want her generation to live with the burden of nuclear weapons.
'He sincerely explained his commitment to denuclearisation,' he added.
Moon's memoir, entitled 'From the Frontier to the Centre,' included the passage - which has now sparked backlash - stating that Kim Jong-un 'repeatedly said that he had no intention of using nuclear capabilities.'
Former South Korean president Moon Jae-in's recently published memoir, titled 'From the Periphery to the Centre' claims North Korean leader Kim Jong-un was 'desperate to get rid of his nuclear weapons'. Pictured: The memoir is displayed at a bookstore in Seoul on May 21, 2024
A photo released by the official North Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) shows missiles launched during a simulated nuclear counterattack drill last month
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, accompanied by his daughter Kim Ju Ae, visits a military vehicle production plant on January 5, 2024
The memoir sparked outrage and strong criticism from the South Korean Minister of Unification and top official on North Korea Kim Yung-ho, who said Monday that 'trusting completely' in the country's intent to denuclearise rather than develop its nuclear capabilities could result in a 'miscalculation' that could have a 'severely negative security outcome' for South Korea.
If South Korea relies only on North Korea's 'good faith', its people and national security could be at risk, Kin warned.
'Rather than denouncing the previous administration, he should behave more like a Minister of Unification and focus his energies on restoring inter-Korean relations,' he told a press conference.
But Moon's remarks comes just a month after Kim oversaw North Korea's first ever 'nuclear trigger' drills , which involved simulating a nuclear counterattack as a warning to enemies.
The drill took place on April 22 and Seoul's military had earlier announced that the North had fired several short-range ballistic missiles that day, with Tokyo also confirming the launch.
Kim 'guided a combined tactical drill simulating a nuclear counterattack involving super-large multiple rocket artillerymen,' the official Korean Central News Agency reported at the time.
This picture taken on March 15, 2024 and released from North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) on March 16 shows North Korean leader Kim Jong Un (centre R) and his daughter Ju Ae (centre L) attending the completion and commissioning ceremony for the Gangdong Comprehensive Greenhouse in Pyongyang
Kim Ju Ae has been pictured alongside her father and North Korea's weapons arsenal on several occasions since she first appeared in November 2022
Kim Jong Un (front 2nd R) and his daughter Ju Ae (R) inspecting a training of the Korean People's Army at an undisclosed location in North Korea on March 15, 2024
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, accompanied by his daughter Kim Ju Ae, visits a military vehicle production plant on January 5, 2024
The rockets 'hit their island target' some 219 miles away, it continued, saying Kim had expressed 'great satisfaction' over the result, which boosted 'the Korean-style tactical nuclear strike' - contradicting his apparent 'desperateness' to 'get rid of his nuclear weapons'.
KCNA said the drills were in response to a US-South Korean joint air drill, which runs from April 12 to April 26.
The US and South Korean air forces said the annual exercises would serve for 'demonstrating lethality in the air domain, and enhancing their ability to deter, defend, and defeat any adversary.'
Pyongyang claimed it is 'seriously threatened by the hostile forces' ceaseless military provocations' KCNA said on April 23.
As a result, the North needs to 'more overwhelmingly and more rapidly bolster up the strongest military muscle,' it added.
Kim's daughter, Ju Ae, has been photographed alongside her father at several key public events which stirred speculation that she could have been chosen as the next leader of the nuclear-armed North, for a third hereditary succession.
In an image released by Pyongyang in March, Ju Ae was seen using binoculars to observe recent paratroop drills, standing beside her father and senior military officials.
And in December last year, Kim brought his young daughter to watch the third test of his country's most advanced missile system that could hit the U.S., Seoul and Tokyo.
But little was known about Ju Ae, believed to be the middle child of three, until she made her first public appearance at the time of a missile launch in November 2022.
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