▲ National Security Adviser Shin Won-sik (L) and Principal Deputy National Security Adviser Kim Tae-hyo walk toward the presidential plane at Seoul Air Base, just south of Seoul, on Sept. 19, 2024. (Yonhap)

(LEAD) natl security adviser-N Korea

(LEAD) Nat'l security adviser does not rule out N.K. nuclear test around U.S. election

(ATTN: UPDATES with more remarks by Shin)

SEOUL, Sept. 23 (Yonhap) -- National Security Adviser Shin Won-sik said Monday that North Korea remains ready to carry out its seventh nuclear test at any time and that includes around the U.S. presidential election in November.

Shin made the remark during an interview with Yonhap News TV when asked about the possibility of a seventh nuclear test by the North.

"The question of when will be decided according to North Korea's strategic advantages and disadvantages, and I assess that time includes before and after the U.S. presidential election," he said.

Shin said South Korea and the United States are closely monitoring the possibility of a North Korean nuclear test and have made the issue a top priority.

He also said North Korea's first public disclosure of a uranium enrichment facility earlier this month appears aimed at "attracting domestic and foreign attention by highlighting North Korea's nuclear threat ahead of the U.S. presidential election."

Meanwhile, the national security adviser expressed disagreement with a recent suggestion by former presidential chief of staff Im Jong-seok that South Korea and North Korea "live as they are" without pursuing reunification.

"I think it's extremely regrettable and dangerous that certain political figures are abruptly sympathizing with North Korea's claims and making anti-constitutional claims," Shin said.

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