(MENAFN) North Korea's Vice Foreign Minister Pak Myong-ho issued a scathing rebuke Saturday, dismissing efforts to denuclearize the Korean Peninsula as fundamentally unattainable.

"We will show with patience that denuclearization is a 'pipe dream' which can never be realized even if it (South Korea) talks about it a thousand times," Pak said in a statement issued by North Korean media.

The high-ranking diplomat's remarks come as South Korea continues pressing the denuclearization agenda at international forums. Pak specifically criticized Seoul's push to include the matter in upcoming Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit discussions, accusing the South of raising the issue "whenever an opportunity presents itself."

Pak escalated his criticism further, targeting Seoul's refusal to acknowledge Pyongyang's nuclear weapons status.

"The ROK (Republic of Korea) is still unaware that struggling to deny the DPRK's (North Korea) position as a nuclear weapons state and talking about its daydream of realizing the denuclearization just reveal its lack of common sense," added Pak.

The statement, distributed through media, arrives ahead of critical diplomatic talks. South Korea's President Lee Jae Myung and Chinese President Xi Jinping are scheduled to convene in the coastal city of Gyeongju during the APEC summit.

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