In US strikes on Iran, North Korea sees nuclear vindication

South China Morning Post · Mar 2, 2026 · Collected from RSS

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Kim Jong-un will have seen the footage. A supreme leader of nearly 37 years, killed alongside members of his own family. Citizens celebrating in the streets. Rivals already angling for a role in the political transition.If the US-Israeli strike that killed Iran’s supreme leader Ali Khamenei on Saturday was intended to send a message to the world, analysts say North Korea almost certainly received it.Though the lesson likely learned – do not negotiate with the US and never be in Iran’s position in the first place – is perhaps not the one that Washington intended.“He will no doubt take steps to avoid a similar fate for his family and North Korea,” Leif-Eric Easley, a professor of international studies at Ewha Womans University in Seoul, said of Kim.“The lesson Pyongyang likely draws from these strikes is to reject interactions with Seoul that could weaken the Kim regime.”North Korean leader Kim Jong-un delivers a speech on Sunday. Photo: KCNA/KNS/AFPNorth Korea’s Foreign Ministry issued a statement on Sunday condemning the “gangster-like behaviour of the United States and Israel” over the killing of Khamenei.