The influential sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un rebuffed overtures by South Korea’s new liberal government, saying Monday that its “blind trust” in the country's alliance with the U.S. and hostility toward North Korea make it no different from its conservative predecessor.

The influential sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has dismissed the United States’ stated intent to resume diplomacy on denuclearisation, urging Washington to accept her country as a nuclear weapons state.

North Korean state media reported that Kim Jong Un urged North Korean troops to prepare "for real war" as he observed a firing contest of artillery units.