North Korea Removes ‘Unification,’ ‘Socialist’ in Constitution Updates, Mandates Nuclear Strike If Kim Is Assassinated

The changes indicate the North Korean leader is focusing solely on preserving the regime amid rising global geopolitical tensions, analysts say.

North Korea has revised its constitution amid rising global geopolitical tensions, making changes to fundamental policies, since the United States initiated a war against the Iranian regime in late February.

Analysts told The Epoch Times that the changes could lead to a temporary ease of geopolitical tensions in the Korean Peninsula. However, the move has increased uncertainty for the Chinese communist regime.

Multiple South Korean and international media outlets reported in early May that North Korea revised its constitution in March, officially abandoning the long-pursued goal of achieving “unification” with South Korea, dropping all references to reunification, including terms such as “peaceful reunification” and “great national unity,” for the updated constitution.

This updated version of the constitution includes a new territorial clause that explicitly uses South Korea’s official name, the “Republic of Korea,” which signifies Pyongyang’s formal recognition of the existence of two independent states on the Korean Peninsula, thereby bringing a definitive end to its policy of pursuing unification for decades since 1948.

Furthermore, the references within the constitution to the “Kim Il-sung–Kim Jong-il Constitution,” as well as ideologically charged phrases such as ”imperialist aggressors,“ ”liberated from exploitation and oppression,“ and ”subversive activities of internal and external hostile elements” have all been removed.

Meanwhile, the revised constitution characterizes North Korea as a “responsible nuclear-weapon state,” and gives North Korean leader Kim Jong Un the authority to use nuclear weapons.

The revised constitution—which was approved on March 22 by North Korea’s rubber stamp legislature, the Supreme People’s Assembly—also requires an automatic retaliatory nuclear strike if Kim is assassinated, British newspaper The Telegraph reported on May 8.

North Korea’s revision of its constitution followed the killing of the Iranian theocratic regime’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei by U.S. forces in February.

Through these constitutional updates, “North Korea is signaling to the United States both the deterrent capability of its nuclear arsenal to safeguard its regime, and its unwillingness to engage in military conflict or confrontation with the U.S. on the Korean Peninsula,” Lin Chih-Hao, assistant research fellow at the Division of National Security Research at the Institute for National Defense and Security Research in Taiwan, told The Epoch Times.

After seeing the Trump administration take out the leaders of Venezuela and Iran and impose a comprehensive blockade against Cuba, “Kim fears that Trump’s next move will be to target him,” Mark Cao, a U.S.-based military analyst and host of Chinese-language military news YouTube channel Mark Space, told The Epoch Times.

North Korea’s recent updates to its constitution indicates that “Kim Jong Un’s objective is simply to preserve the North Korean regime,” Cao said. “He recognizes that his capabilities are insufficient to achieve the so-called unification of the Korean Peninsula.” …

https://www.theepochtimes.com/china/north-korea-removes-unification-socialist-in-constitution-updates-mandates-nuclear-strike-if-kim-is-assassinated-6027032

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Geopolitical Impact in East Asia

By officially acknowledging the Republic of Korea—the existence of South Korea—which is significantly different from the prevailing rhetoric it had held that North Korea alone was the rightful authority over the Korean Peninsula, “it signals that he no longer intends to assert a desire to invade South Korea. From a legal standpoint, he has effectively renounced the ambition and aspiration to unify the Korean Peninsula,” Cao said, adding that the change represents a step back from the Kim regime’s previous stance.

The situation on the Korean Peninsula post World War II resembles that across Taiwan Strait: a communist regime against a free democracy established by people of the same ethnicity and share the same cultural root, in which both communist regimes had denied the existence of its democratic counterpart and constantly threatened to “unify” with the other part using force. However, while the North Korean regime has changed its stance, the Chinese communist regime continues to deny the sovereignty of Taiwan—formally known as the Republic of China.

North Korea’s elevation of inter-Korean relations to an “international issue between states” has increased uncertainty for mainland China’s ruling Communist Party (CCP) regarding geopolitics on the Korean Peninsula and across the Taiwan Strait, Lin said.

By taking this action, “Kim Jong Un has effectively deprived the CCP of a key bargaining chip—one that allowed them to exert leverage over South Korea,” Cao said. “This presents a rather tricky situation for the CCP to navigate—or, at the very least, it is a development with which they are far from pleased.”

From the perspective of geopolitics in Northeast Asia and the wider Asia-Pacific region, Kim’s move may well lead to an easing of tensions on the Korean Peninsula, Cao said.

The constitutional revisions show that North Korea is attempting to cultivate an international environment favorable to its own interests, Lin said. “It is highly probable that it will seek to adjust the dynamics of the trilateral relationship between North Korea, China, and Russia.”

In reality, the relationship between North Korea and the CCP has never been particularly harmonious, Cao said. “North Korea harbors a deep sense of wariness toward the CCP. Consequently, they would rather band together with Russia than align themselves with the CCP. They maintain a deliberate distance from the CCP.”

Russia–North Korea relations have become noticeably closer in recent years, as the Kim regime has provided military support, including sending soldiers, to assist Russia’s war against Ukraine; in return Putin has provided North Korea with military technology, especially in missile development. Meanwhile, China–North Korea relations have cooled, especially since the COVID-19 pandemic.

Kim Jong Un’s primary concern is whether he can withstand it if the United States were to truly exert such “maximum pressure” on North Korea, like it did on Venezuela and Iran, Cao said. “Moreover, he is aware that Russia is struggling with its own affairs; consequently, the likelihood of Russia being able to offer him assistance is limited.”

Kim has carefully assessed the actual extent to which China and Russia are willing—and able—to assist him, according to Cao.

“Having observed the CCP’s stance toward other nations—be it Venezuela, Cuba, or Iran—Kim has been left feeling rather disheartened,” he said. “Specifically, he noted that the CCP hasn’t gone all out to support these so-called ‘little brothers.’ Consequently, he has developed a palpable sense of vulnerability and crisis regarding his own survival.”

As a result, Kim has adopted a defensive posture, prioritizing self-preservation above all else, Cao said.

“Therefore, he has signaled to the United States and the Western world that his sole objective is to secure and hold onto North Korea—that he aspires to be nothing more than the ruler of his own realm,” he said. “As for the Korean Peninsula as a whole, he harbors no extravagant ambitions.” …

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Abandoning the Term ‘Socialist’

North Korea’s communist regime first adopted its constitution in September 1948 and introduced the socialist constitution in 1972. Notably, the revised constitution this March dropped “socialist” from the title and related articles.

Dropping the term “socialist” from the constitution and removing the references to the ideal of “unifying the peninsula” show that “Kim Jong Un is relatively pragmatic,” Cao said. “His primary objective is to preserve the Kim family’s hereditary position across generations—in other words, the Kim dynasty.”

Following World War II and the liberation of Korea from Japanese rule, Soviet Union occupational forces selected Kim Il-sung—the grandfather of Kim Jong Un—who had served as an officer in the Soviet Union’s Red Army, to establish and lead the communist government in North Korea. The North Korean regime was fully supported by the Soviet Union, while the southern part of the peninsula was supported by the United States and its western allies.

“Ultimately, Kim Il-sung owed his rise to power entirely to the Soviet Union; under Soviet patronage, he was compelled to adopt a communist model of governance,” Cao said of the Kim regime’s origin.

However, it is noteworthy that the name Kim Il-sung chose for his party was not the “Communist Party,” but rather the “Workers’ Party,” Cao pointed out. “He deliberately avoided using the term ‘Communist Party.’ This suggests that, from Kim Il-sung’s own perspective, he actually harbored an aversion toward the term “Communist Party” or the ideology of communism itself.”

In the contemporary world, Kim Jong Un has realized that this brand of socialism has, in reality, reached a dead end, Cao said.

By abandoning the term “socialist,” Kim Jong Un demonstrates that he “intends to signal to the United States and the West: ‘Mine is not a genuine communist state; I am merely a dynastic dictatorship. Therefore, from an ideological standpoint, we are not in conflict with you,’” Cao said.

Lin said that it shows Kim intends to establish a stable party-state administrative system, “while simultaneously reinforcing the trajectory of dynastic rule—meaning that both the ‘political system’ and ‘legitimacy of rule’ will undergo further consolidation.”

Preparing for the Future

Kim’s health issues in recent years and the increased public appearances with his daughter have drawn international attention, sparking speculation that Kim is preparing a successor for the regime.

“Judging by North Korea’s recent constitutional amendments and the content of its internal political education, the regime has successfully broken free from the ideological framework of the past—specifically, ‘Kim Il-sung–Kim Jong-il-ism,’” Lin said. “This shift enabled the removal of the ‘national reunification’ clause from the constitution, a development that also signifies that Kim Jong-un’s domestic political reforms have yielded concrete results.”

As things currently stand, the likelihood of Kim Ju-ae succeeding to the leadership appears to be quite high, Lin said.

“Whether it be Russia or the CCP, neither is a true friend; neither can guarantee the continued survival of the Kim dynasty,” Cao said. “Therefore, Kim hopes that his daughter will be able to pursue a path of future reconciliation with the West. I believe this is his primary consideration.”

Lin is more cautious about Kim’s stance or the future development on the peninsula.

“Although his stance toward the United States remains to be seen, it is likely to prove difficult to alter the U.S. position regarding the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula,” Lin said. ”This issue may well continue to serve as an obstacle to the future development of U.S.–North Korean relations.”

Notable moments from the past week in America.

America in Photos: USS Gerald R. Ford Returns, National Police Week, and Rededicate 250

1) COVER - USS Gerald R. Ford Returns

2) Secretary of War Pete Hegseth hosts an enhanced honor cordon and meeting welcoming South Korean Minister of National Defense Ahn Gyu-Back to the Pentagon in Arlington, Va., on May 11, 2026. Madalina Kilroy/The Epoch Times

3) President Donald Trump welcomes college football champions, the Indiana University Hoosiers, to the White House on May 11, 2026. Madalina Kilroy/The Epoch Times

4) Law enforcement officers look on during the National Peace Officer's Memorial Service on the West Front Lawn of the U.S. Capitol in Washington on May 15, 2026. National Police Week celebrates law enforcement officers and honors those who have fallen in the line of duty. Heather Diehl/Getty Images

5) Workers assemble a garden with silk flowers and images of victims of the deadly crackdown by the Iranian government on pro-democracy protesters from earlier this year during a rally across from the U.S. Capitol on May 16, 2026. Hosted by the Organization of Iranian American Communities, the event brought together Iranian Americans, members of Congress, former U.S. officials, former political prisoners, women’s rights activists, and others to protest political executions in Iran and advocate for democracy in the wake of the United States and Israel starting a war with Iran. Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

lots moar:

https://www.theepochtimes.com/article/america-in-photos-uss-gerald-r-ford-returns-national-police-week-and-rededicate-250-post-6026492

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I waz there, too