The top US intelligence officer in charge of North Korea’s file has warned that Pyongyang sees diplomacy as nothing but a way to advance the development of its nuclear weapons.
Biden’s candidate for the State Department, Anthony Blinken, said on Tuesday that the new US administration intends to conduct a full review of the US approach to North Korea, to look at ways to increase pressure on it to return to the negotiating table.
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White House spokeswoman Jin Psaki confirmed this Friday, saying that North Korea’s nuclear weapons pose a serious threat to peace, and that Washington has a vital interest in deterring Pyongyang.
For his part, Sydney Seeler, the US intelligence officer in charge of the North Korea file, told the Center for Strategic and International Studies earlier that Pyongyang’s weapons development has been a policy that has been going on for 30 years.
He added, “Every (Pyongyang’s) participation in diplomatic efforts has been aimed at strengthening the nuclear program, not to find a way out … I just urge people not to let tactical ambiguity impede the strategic clarity we have on North Korea … so we should not feel overly optimistic if it is suddenly suggested. (North Korean leader Kim Jong Un) conducting a dialogue tomorrow, and we should not be surprised or overly frustrated if a (North Korean) ICBM is launched by Sunday. “
Seiler added that the humanitarian aid – which Blinken said the United States should consider providing to North Korea if needed – is not something that interests Pyongyang.
“The power that North Korea seeks to possess is much greater than that needed by a country that simply wants to be far from others … This is where the real danger lies in failing to act.”
Source: Reuters
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