ADVERTISEMENTPyongyang also sent no congratulatory message when Khamenei's son, Mojtaba Khamenei, was selected as the new supreme leader, Park said, citing the NIS. While China and Russia had frequently issued statements on the conflict, North Korea's Foreign Ministry had only issued two toned-down statements so far, consistent, the NIS said, with North Korea's recent tendency to avoid direct criticism of U.S. President Donald Trump. North Korea was also facing significant economic strain related to the Middle East crisis, with disruptions to the procurement of industrial supplies, rising prices, and a surging exchange rate, the NIS told lawmakers. North Korea was also trying to secure Russian oil supplies, the NIS said. At North Korea's Ninth Workers' Party Congress in late February, Kim appeared to leave an opening for talks with Washington, saying there was no reason the countries "cannot get along well," if the U.S. recognised North Korea's status as a nuclear state and withdrew its hostile policy.

Source: The Telegraph April 06, 2026 09:10 UTC