Trump expands North Korean nuclear weapons to "112"... Iranian nuclear weapons "absolutely forbidden"

[Financial News] U.S. President Donald Trump, who has been sending positive signals to North Korea since last August, claimed that the number of North Korean nuclear weapons stands at "112," double the figure from August. While acknowledging North Korea's nuclear weapons, he reiterated that Iran must absolutely not possess nuclear weapons.
According to local media outlets such as Fox News, Trump, who has begun a nationwide campaign tour ahead of the November midterm elections, explained why he maintains a good relationship with Chinese President Xi Jinping at a rally in Ohio on the 3rd (local time). He said, "Isn't it good to maintain good relationships with the leaders of big countries, big nuclear powers?" Referring to North Korean Chairman Kim Jong Un, Trump emphasized, "I get along very well with Kim Jong Un," adding, "Do you know who that person is? North Korea." Trump stated, "It is good to get along well when someone has 112 nuclear missiles."
On this day, Trump did not directly mention that Kim Jong Un has 112 nuclear weapons, but based on the context, it is presumed that he referred to North Korea's nuclear weapons as 112.
Earlier, on August 16, when the war with Iran had entered a lull, Trump announced via social media the reduction of joint South Korea-U.S. military exercises and claimed that North Korea was "a country that does not threaten the United States but respects it." On the 19th of the same month, he asserted that Kim Jong Un "possesses 57 very powerful nuclear weapons" and claimed that he would "meet with Kim Jong Un before the year."
The exact number of nuclear weapons possessed by North Korea has not yet been disclosed. Previously, the Swedish think tank Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) estimated in its annual report last month that North Korea possesses approximately 60 nuclear warheads. Last August, former Minister of National Defense Ahn Gyu-back stated, based on analysis by domestic research institutions, that "it is generally estimated to be around 80 to 120" regarding North Korea's nuclear arsenal.



On this day, Trump drew a strong line regarding Iran's possession of nuclear weapons while mentioning Iran alongside North Korea. He stated, "But there is a difference," adding, "Iran will never have nuclear missiles." Meeting with reporters just before departing for Ohio on the 3rd, Trump said, "I have a decision to make regarding Iran." He continued, "Iran is devastated," stating, "Therefore, the only question is whether it will be an easy path or a hard path." Trump said, "We will get it done, whether it is the easy path or the hard path," without explaining what he meant by those words. The previous day, at a campaign rally in Texas, he also said, "I think we will win right after the (November) election," adding, "It could be before the election." At the same time, he claimed that Iran is "ready to collapse."
On the 29th of last month, Trump explained the difference between North Korea and Iran at the White House. When asked why he acknowledges North Korea's nuclear weapons while denying Iran's possession of nuclear weapons, he stated, "Do you know why? It is because there was a president who did not do what I did. There was a president who was not Trump, and they failed to stop [North Korea's possession of nuclear weapons]," adding, "As long as I am here, he [Kim Jong Un] will be fine." This remark is presumed to be a criticism aimed at former U.S. President Joseph Robinette Biden Jr.
Meanwhile, according to overseas anti-government Iranian media outlets such as Iran International on the 3rd, the United States recently proposed to Iran that denuclearization negotiations be expedited. In response, Iran demanded that the U.S. first hand over Iranian funds frozen overseas. On the same day, the semi-official Iranian news agency Fars News Agency reported that the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps had attacked at least seven oil tankers in the Strait of Hormuz over the past five days. Also on that day, pro-Iranian Houthi rebels in Yemen claimed that they had launched retaliatory airstrikes on Saudi Arabia's oil and military facilities, stating that Saudi Arabia had bombed the rebel-occupied Yemeni capital, Sanaa, multiple times.




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