President Barack Obama has abandoned efforts to halt North Korea's expanding nuclear program, according to both critics and supporters, Politico reported.

"I think they've had a blind spot on North Korea," California GOP Rep. Ed Royce, chairman of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, told Politico. "Unfortunately, the administration in failing to take decisive action against North Korea is setting a certain precedent."

Administration officials have pushed back against the claims, pointing to the sanctions that have remained in place and saying that negotiations have not been a priority because North Korea has repeatedly broken previous commitments.

North Korea has been moving forward with its nuclear program. Last week, analysts said that satellite imagery showed that the country has restarted activity at one of its facilities, and Chinese experts have also warned recently that it may already have as many as 20 nuclear warheads, according to Politico.

One former government official, who has been working behind the scenes to get agreement with North Korea to restart talks, says that while the North Koreans have said they were open to discussing denuclearization, Obama administration officials have not pursued it.

"I think the administration has punted. They want to get out of office without having done anything on this issue," Joel Wit told Politico.

Others have also said that the U.S. under Obama has missed opportunities to re-engage with North Korea by using new approaches.

"The problem is a new formula needs to be pursued," Daryl Kimball, executive director of the Arms Control Association, told Politico. "When a certain policy, however logical, however principled, isn't working … we're past the point where an adjustment is in order. You don't keep trying the same thing if it's not achieving the result you want."

But Obama administration officials say that the trust is not there to engage with the North Koreans.

"At every turn what we've seen is a lack of sincerity and a lack of seriousness from North Korea about abandoning its nuclear program," a senior administration official told Politico.

Nevertheless, a senior State Department official acknowledged that "the situation is getting worse in the sense that they're continuing to improve their capabilities," but added that "it would be even more serious, more problematic for us to just rush back to negotiations when we're just not sure whether the North Koreans are ready or not."

"The credibility of the process is an important issue," the official told Politico. "I think it would be a mistake for us to begin any process while the North Koreans are continuing their nuclear activities.

"The first step needs to be some way for them to suspend their nuclear activities, at least while the negotiations are going on."

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