North Korea Rejects "Rogue State" Label, Signals Continued Resistance to U.S. Diplomacy

North Korea Criticizes Marco Rubio's "Rogue State" Label

In its first direct criticism of the Trump administration, North Korea lashed out at U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio for calling it a "rogue state." The statement, released by the North Korean Foreign Ministry, warned that such "coarse and nonsensical remarks" would never contribute to U.S. interests.

The statement specifically took issue with Rubio's branding of North Korea as a "rogue state" during a media interview. This likely refers to Rubio's appearance on "The Megyn Kelly Show" on January 30th, where he used the term while discussing foreign policy challenges.

This is not the first time U.S. officials have described North Korea as a rogue state. However, the North's latest statement suggests the country is unlikely to quickly embrace President Trump's overtures for diplomacy.

Trump has repeatedly expressed his desire to reach out to North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, even calling him a "smart guy" and "not a religious zealot" in a recent Fox News interview. He has also boasted of his personal ties with Kim, despite the breakdown of their earlier high-stakes diplomacy in 2018-19 due to disputes over U.S.-led sanctions.

While North Korea hasn't directly responded to Trump's interview comments, it has maintained its confrontational rhetoric against the U.S. and continued its weapons testing activities. Last week, Kim visited a facility to produce nuclear materials and called for boosting North Korea's nuclear capability in the face of what he called challenges posed by "hostile forces," an apparent reference to the U.S. and South Korea.

Many experts believe Kim now feels he has greater leverage than before due to his expanded nuclear arsenal and deepening military ties with Russia. While the previous diplomacy with Trump likely gave Kim a propaganda coup for winning recognition on the world stage, the eventual collapse of diplomacy was still a significant embarrassment.

Kim has since focused on perfecting nuclear-capable missiles targeting the U.S. and South Korea. Last November, he stated that his past negotiations with the United States only confirmed Washington's "unchangeable" hostility toward his country and described his nuclear buildup as the only way to counter external threats. During a key political meeting in December, Kim vowed to implement the "toughest" anti-U.S. policy.