North Korea is more dangerous now than before President Donald Trump entered the White House due to the advances the regime has made on its nuclear capabilities since then, former national security advisor John Bolton told CNBC's "Squawk Box Asia" on Wednesday.
"The fact is that we wasted a lot of time with Trump's failed diplomacy with North Korea," Bolton said, slamming the president. "Rogue states need time to perfect their nuclear capabilities, their ballistic missile capabilities. That's what [North Korean leader] Kim Jong Un was doing."
Trump became the first U.S. president to visit North Korea at the Demilitarized Zone and held two nuclear summits with Kim, but the diplomatic moves have not resulted in a major denuclearization agreement, according to The Hill.
Bolton is known for his hawkish positions on North Korea, Iran, and other nations and has harshly criticized Trump on foreign policy issues since leaving the administration.
Trump has frequently brushed aside criticism from Bolton as that of a disgruntled former staff member.
Last year Bolton told Axios that he doesn't believe Trump "really means it" about ending Pyongyang's nuclear weapons program, saying "the idea that we are somehow exerting maximum pressure on North Korea is just unfortunately not true."
He added at the time that "We're now nearly three years into the administration with no visible progress toward getting North Korea to make the strategic decision to stop pursuing deliverable nuclear weapons.”
Brian Freeman ✉
Brian Freeman, a Newsmax writer based in Israel, has more than three decades writing and editing about culture and politics for newspapers, online and television.
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