The following are the words of former U.S. ambassador to South Korea Harry Harris regarding North Korea and its nuclear ambitions:

“The U.S. intelligence community assesses that KJU views nuclear weapons as the ultimate deterrent against foreign intervention.”

“KJU declared last year that he would be willing to employ nukes more broadly in wartime, and last September, he stated unequivocally that he would never give up his nukes and the North Korea’s status as a nuclear weapons state is irreversible.”

“That doesn’t sound to me like he’s going to get rid of his nukes any time soon. In fact, he’s telling us precisely the opposite.”

“We must not relax sanctions or reduce joint military exercises just to get North Korea to come to the negotiating table. This is a fool’s error.”

“While we hope for diplomacy with North Korea to be successful, we must recognize that hope alone is not a course of action. The quest for dialogue with the North must never be made at the expense of the ability to respond to threats from the North.”