European Union and South Korean leaders denounced North Korea’s nuclear weapons program and continued ballistic missile launches in a joint statement on Monday, with the European Council president stressing that Pyongyang’s “back door” nuclear armament will not be accepted.

South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol and the two EU leaders — European Council and European Commission presidents Charles Michel and Ursula von der Leyen — articulated the position following a meeting to discuss an array of economic and security issues.

“We strongly condemn the DPRK’s repeated illegal ballistic missile launches as well as its ongoing nuclear development and references to the