Spy Chief Disputes Trump’s Assertions of Progress with North Korea, Reports Reuters

North Korea’s Nuclear Ambitions: U.S. Intelligence Chief Raises Concerns Ahead of Summit

By Patricia Zengerle and Doina Chiacu

WASHINGTON – Dan Coats, the U.S. national intelligence chief, expressed skepticism on Tuesday regarding North Korea’s commitment to denuclearization, contradicting recent statements by President Donald Trump regarding progress in negotiations with Pyongyang.

During his testimony before a Senate committee, Coats indicated that North Korea is unlikely to relinquish all of its nuclear weapons, continuing activities that suggest a lack of sincerity in its denuclearization pledges. This assessment comes just weeks before a planned second summit between Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, where the president hopes to secure a significant achievement in his foreign policy.

The annual Worldwide Threat Assessment from the Directorate of National Intelligence highlighted that North Korea has refrained from conducting nuclear or missile tests for over a year and has publicly expressed support for the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula. The report also noted that Pyongyang had "reversibly dismantled" certain elements of its weapons infrastructure.

Despite these developments, the report emphasized that North Korea is unlikely to abandon all nuclear weapons and production capabilities. Coats elaborated that the North Korean leadership views nuclear weapons as essential for the regime’s survival and that recent observations indicate a lack of full commitment to denuclearization.

In his New Year’s address for 2019, Kim Jong Un asserted that North Korea would progress toward complete denuclearization and pledged not to create, test, use, or proliferate nuclear weapons. However, Kim’s statements were tied to what he described as "practical actions" from the United States, suggesting that diplomatic relations, economic sanctions, and military activities are linked to the denuclearization process.

The first summit between Trump and Kim in June produced an agreement for work toward complete denuclearization, but tangible progress has been lacking. Washington has called for concrete actions, including a full disclosure of North Korean nuclear and missile facilities, while Pyongyang seeks an easing of international sanctions and a formal end to the Korean War, which concluded with an armistice rather than a peace treaty.

The White House announced that Trump is set to hold a second summit with Kim around the end of February, with economic sanctions expected to remain in place. On January 19, Trump described a meeting with North Korea’s nuclear envoy as "incredible," claiming that both sides made significant progress on denuclearization.

Earlier in the day, Han Tae Song, North Korea’s ambassador to the United Nations in Geneva, stated that relations with the United States could improve significantly if Washington responds positively to Pyongyang’s denuclearization efforts through reliable measures and practical actions.