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James Clapper

US Director of National Intelligence James Clapper said on Oct. 25 that getting North Korea to abandon its nuclear program was a “lost cause,” and that the most realistic approach would be to try to restrict its nuclear capabilities.

The remarks from Clapper appear likely to trigger controversy, as they show some corners of the US administration are focused more on freezing North Korea’s program and preventing it from achieving advanced nuclear capabilities rather than on outright denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, which is the official policy goal of the South Korean and US governments.

When asked at a Council on Foreign Relations seminar that day if he thought Pyongyang would give up its nuclear weapons, Clapper replied, “I think the notion of getting the North Koreans to denuclearize is probably a lost cause. They are not going to do that - that is their ticket to survival.”

“The best we could probably hope for is some sort of a cap [on North Korea’s nuclear capabilities], but they are not going to do that just because we ask them. There‘s going to have to be some significant inducements,” he continued.

His message appeared to be that the policy focus should be freezing the nuclear program’s capabilities at their current level - and on providing North Korea with some corresponding carrot.

Clapper’s position is similar to that of some dialogue proponents in Washington, who argue that while the ultimate goal should be denuclearization of North Korea, negotiations in the near term should be targeted at freezing its program. It is also slightly different, in that Clapper’s argument that Pyongyang is unlikely to abandon its nuclear program in the long term is an effective acknowledgement of the North as a nuclear state. In this, it conflict with the Barack Obama administration’s position that North Korea cannot be acknowledged as a nuclear state, that Washington cannot enter dialogue without Pyongyang indicating its commitment to denuclearization, and that no reward can be given for a freeze.

Clapper also spoke about a possible response to the North Korean nuclear and missile threats, saying there were a number of options.

“Obviously military is one of them,” he said, adding that sanctions were another.

“But [the military option is] not a decision, fortunately, that the intelligence community makes,” he continued.

By Yi Yong-in, Washington correspondent

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