Article content

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un boasted in an annual New Year’s Day speech Monday that he had a nuclear button on his desk and that the entire United States was within range of his weapons – but he also vowed not to attack unless threatened.

Kim promised to focus this year on producing nuclear warheads and missiles for operational deployment, adding that the United States could now “never start a war against me or our country.”

We apologize, but this video has failed to load.

tap here to see other videos from our team. Try refreshing your browser, or Kim Jong Un warns North Korea's 'nuclear button' is on his desk Back to video

But he also struck a conciliatory note, opening the door to dialogue with South Korea and saying he would consider sending a delegation to the Winter Olympics to be held in his southern neighbor in February.

“The United States should know that the button for nuclear weapons is on my table,” he said during the nationally televised speech, according to a provisional translation by The Associated Press. “The entire area of the U.S. mainland is within our nuclear strike range.”