North Korea issued a foreign ministry “spokesperson’s press statement [taebyonin tamhwa]” on December 12, in reaction to a UNSC meeting convened by the U.S. the previous day to discuss North Korea’s weapons programs. 

Though consistent with its handling of UNSC meetings on the North’s weapon tests since August, Pyongyang’s decision to issue a medium-level foreign ministry spokesperson’s press statement seems to confirm that the North will adhere to a hard line vis-a-vis Washington, and that a breakthrough seems unlikely before the year-end deadline.

The pronouncement was issued despite a UNSC