PYONGYANG: A senior North Korean official has lashed out at France after it warned Pyongyang’s nuclear ambition could pose a threat to Europe, saying Paris must abandon its own atomic weapons first.
Ri Tok-Son, deputy director of the foreign ministry’s European department, said France’s claim that a nuclear missile launched from the North could strike Europe was “preposterous.”
He stressed that the North’s atomic arsenal was a deterrent against US nuclear threats which Paris does not face.
“Recently, high ranking French politicians startled the people by saying absurd things with regards to the DPRK’s (North Korea’s) successful detonation of an H-bomb for ICBM (intercontinental ballistic missile),” Ri said in an interview with AFP in Pyongyang on Friday.
The comments came just hours before the US made a formal request for a UN Security Council vote on tough new sanctions against the repressive regime.
The North conducted its sixth nuclear test a week ago — saying it was a hydrogen bomb that could be fitted into a missile — sparking international condemnation and calls for further measures to force an end to the perilous stand-off.
French President Emmanuel Macron called on the UN Sunday to “quickly react” to the escalation and urged the European Union to come up with a “clear and united” response.
His foreign minister Jean-Yves Le Drian warned that North Korea could have the capacity to deliver a nuclear strike on the US and even Europe “within months.”
In a riposte, Ri said: “They busied themselves ... making preposterous remarks like ‘the nuclear missile of North Korea are military means that can strike Europe’.” He did not refer to Macron or Le Drian by name.
“It is ridiculous to say that the nuclear weapons of the DPRK, the deterrent force against the nuclear threat and blackmail of the US, can aim at Europe,” he added.
“If nuclear weapons are such bad things, then France should first give up its nuclear weapons since it is not under anyone’s nuclear threat.”
Washington has presented a draft UN resolution calling for an oil embargo on North Korea, an assets freeze on leader Kim Jong-Un, a ban on textiles and an end to payments of North Korean guest workers.
While in North Korea, which was marking the nation’s founding anniversary Saturday, local media issued fresh calls for a nuclear arms buildup, in defiance of the mounting international sanctions.
North Korea official lambasts France over nuclear criticism
North Korea official lambasts France over nuclear criticism
Lufthansa adds more flights to Asia, Africa as Middle East war reshapes air travel
- Airlines across Europe have been redirecting capacity after suspending services in the Middle East
- Lufthansa said the move also helps meet demand on long-haul routes that Middle Eastern carriers cannot currently serve
LONDON: Lufthansa said on Friday it was shifting capacity from 10 canceled Middle Eastern destinations to routes such as Singapore and Bangkok as it contends with disruption from the US-Israeli war on Iran.
Airlines across Europe, including budget carrier Wizz Air , have been redirecting capacity after suspending services in the Middle East.
Lufthansa said the move also helps meet demand on long-haul routes that Middle Eastern carriers cannot currently serve.
Airline stocks have slumped this week as US and Israeli airstrikes on Iran — and retaliatory strikes by Iran across the Middle East — have disrupted long-haul flights and sent oil prices soaring.
“The war in the Middle East proves once again how exposed air traffic is and how vulnerable it remains,” Lufthansa CEO Carsten Spohr said in a statement. He added the outlook was uncertain, particularly for jet fuel costs.
The schedule changes came as the German group reported better-than-expected 2025 results, saying stricter financial management and fleet renewal had helped contain costs and lift profits. Its shares rose as much as 4 percent, before reversing to trade down 1.2 percent at 1246 GMT.
The company said demand on routes to and from Asia and Africa had risen strongly since the conflict began on Saturday, and it would stick with its focus on expanding long-haul services. Spohr said new flights to Asia would launch in days.
Lufthansa did say how many services it had canceled because of the conflict.
While carriers face costs for rescheduling and rerouting, the biggest impact for those outside the Middle East is expected from surging fuel prices. Brent crude futures have jumped more than 20 percent this week.
Spohr said Lufthansa was well hedged in the short term. The group hedges fuel up to 24 months ahead and was 85 percent hedged as of December 31, according to its annual report.
RESILIENCE
European carriers, including Lufthansa, benefited from slightly lower fuel bills in 2025. Lufthansa’s fuel bill fell 7 percent, helping support earnings as passenger demand stayed firm.
“Last year we were able to significantly increase the Group’s operating profit and achieved the highest revenue in our history. Our results demonstrate the resilience and stability of the Group,” Spohr said.
Lufthansa reported an adjusted operating profit of 2 billion euros ($2.3 billion), compared with 1.9 billion euros forecast in a company-compiled analyst poll and up from 1.6 billion euros in 2024. The group also posted an operating margin of 4.9 percent, up from 4.4 percent a year earlier.
Lufthansa aims to lift operating margins to 8 percent-10 percent between 2028 and 2030 from 4.4 percent in 2024, but strikes by workers, including the most recent on February 12, have made it harder to boost profitability.
Bernstein analyst Alex Irving said ongoing weakness in the passenger airline segment persisted, but that strong performances in Cargo and Lufthansa Technik helped lift profits.
The carrier said the outlook for 2026 was unclear due to geopolitical uncertainty. It projected capacity growth of 4 percent, alongside increased revenue and profit margin.
