North Korean Leader Says He May Take a 'New Path' If Pressures Continue

Kim Jong-un, the leader of North Korea, while expressing readiness for another meeting with the U.S. President and moving towards denuclearization, has warned that 'if our patience runs out, we may take a new path.' In his annual New Year message, he stated, 'I am always ready to meet and discuss with the President of the United States and will strive to reach a result that is welcomed by the international community.' Kim Jong-un added, '[However] if the United States does not fulfill its promises, and continues unilateral actions, sanctions, and pressures, misjudging our patience and tolerance, we may have no choice but to take a new path.' The North Korean leader mentioned that if the U.S. responds to his country's 'active and preventive' measures, 'the relations [between Washington and Pyongyang]... will progress.' In another part of his New Year message, he expressed interest in increasing economic, industrial, and travel relations between the two Koreas; South Korean media have suggested that Kim intends to resume some economic and cultural projects if certain U.S. sanctions are lifted. However, it is unclear what exactly Kim Jong-un means by the 'new path' that his regime may take, and no further details were provided in his annual speech. In recent weeks, several analysts have suggested that Pyongyang may have a contingency plan ready in case sanctions continue. Lee Jung-sak, a former South Korean Minister of Unification, stated that while the likelihood of North Korea withdrawing from negotiations is low, if sanctions persist, Pyongyang may revert to policies that ultimately lead to three meals a day for its people. On the other hand, some analysts have suggested that Pyongyang may increase its diplomatic efforts to obtain guarantees from the U.S. In the spring, Kim and Trump met in Singapore and agreed to take steps towards denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula. However, since then, doubts have arisen regarding Pyongyang's ultimate intentions or the complete dismantling of its key nuclear and military facilities, although no reports of nuclear tests or ballistic missile launches by North Korea were published in 2018, which is unprecedented in the past seven years. North Korea has not hidden its dissatisfaction with issues such as ongoing sanctions or the current deadlock in signing a peace treaty between the two Koreas. The North Korean leadership has also called for a complete halt to joint military exercises between South Korea and the U.S. Conversely, the United States states that sanctions will be lifted only after North Korea denuclearizes. Donald Trump, the U.S. President, has repeatedly emphasized that he is 'in no hurry' on this path.