NK leader has 'no intention' of negotiating away nukes, seeks 'tacit' nuclear power recognition: US assessment
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has no intention of negotiating away his regime's nuclear and other "strategic" weapons programs, a US threat report said Tuesday, as a top intelligence official viewed Pyongyang as seeking at least "tacit" recognition as a nuclear power.
The Office of the Director of National Intelligence released the Annual Threat Assessment of the US Intelligence Community, as DNI Tulsi Gabbard said North Korea may be ready to carry out another nuclear test "on short notice" and continue intercontinental ballistic missile tests to show its negotiation leverage.
The assessment came as US President Donald Trump has voiced his openness to resuming dialogue with Kim amid speculation that Trump could focus on reducing threats from Pyongyang rather than on ridding it of its nuclear arms despite his stated pursuit of the "complete" denuclearization of North Korea.
"Kim has no intention of negotiating away his strategic weapons programs, which he perceives as a guarantor of regime security and national pride, because they threaten the homeland, US forces in the region, and US allies like South Korea and Japan," the assessment report said.
Last year's edition of the report said that Kim "almost certainly" has no intentions of negotiating away his nuclear program.
This year's report also pointed out that Russia is increasingly supporting the North's nuclear status in exchange for Pyongyang's support for Moscow's war against Ukraine.
Speaking at the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, Gabbard highlighted Pyongyang's adherence to its nuclear program.
"North Korea is probably prepared to conduct another nuclear test on short notice and continues to flight test ICBMs to demonstrate their increasing capabilities as leverage in future negotiations," she said in her opening remarks.
Seoul and Washington have shared the view that Pyongyang has completed preparations for its seventh nuclear test, while awaiting a political decision to go ahead. The recalcitrant regime conducted a total of six underground nuclear experiments from 2006-2017.
Gabbard said that the North's leader is pursuing stronger strategic and conventional capabilities that can target US forces and allies in the region, as well as the US mainland, to bolster his country's leverage and stature, defend his regime and achieve "at least tacit recognition as a nuclear weapons power."
The threat report underscored the US intelligence community's concerns over a deepening North Korea-Russia alignment, backed by the "comprehensive strategic partnership" treaty that Kim and Russian President Vladimir Putin signed in June last year.
The treaty calls for one party to provide military aid to the other in the event of an armed invasion -- a pledge that effectively revived the two countries' Cold War-era military alliance.
"Kim's newly cemented strategic partnership with Russia is yielding financial benefit, diplomatic support, and defense cooperation. The partnership with Moscow also helps reduce Pyongyang's reliance on Beijing," it said.
"North Korea's advancing strategic weapons capabilities and increasing access to revenue are enabling Kim's longstanding goals of securing international acceptance as a nuclear power, reducing US military presence on the Korean Peninsula, expanding state control over the North's economy, and blocking foreign influence."
The report warned that in return for its munitions supplies to Russia, North Korea is positioned to gain technical expertise for its weapons developments, which could "accelerate" the North's weapons testing and deployment efforts.
In addition, the report said the North Korean leader will threaten to use force when he perceives US and allied actions as challenging the North's sovereignty, undermining his power or aiming to curb his nuclear and missile ambitions.
"Kim could escalate to more lethal asymmetric activities if he judged North Korea's efforts at deterrence were not working and he needed to send a stronger message," it said. "He also could resort to these lethal activities if he believed doing so would intimidate South Korea or the United States into changing its policies to be more favorable to the North while minimizing the risk of retaliation."
The report raised the possibility of Kim challenging the Northern Limit Line, a de facto inter-Korean sea border. Pyongyang has disputed the NLL as it was unilaterally drawn by the US-led UN Command after the 1950-53 Korean War.
"Kim in the past has challenged South Korea's de facto maritime boundary claims and may do so again, raising the prospects of renewed clashes along the NLL," it said.
On Russia's war in Ukraine, the report said that continuing the war "perpetuates" strategic risks to the US of unintended escalation to large-scale war, the potential use of nuclear weapons, heightened insecurity among North Atlantic Treaty Organization allies, and a "more emboldened" China and North Korea.
Meanwhile, Gabbard noted the intelligence community's concerns over collaboration among China, Russia, Iran and North Korea against US interests.
"The IC sees China, Russia, Iran, and North Korea engaging in activities that could challenge US capabilities and interests, especially related to our security and economy," she said.
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