Politics
Trump’s Targeted Iran Killing Is Kim Jong Un’s Biggest Fear
- Strike reinforces North Korea’s pursuit of nuclear deterrent
- Attack comes as regime threatens to walk away from U.S. talks
Kim Jong Un and Donald Trump on Sentosa island in Singapore on June 12, 2018.
Photographer: Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty ImagesThis article is for subscribers only.
If Kim Jong Un needed another reminder about the risks of bargaining away North Korea’s nuclear weapons program to the U.S., President Donald Trump’s decision to kill one of Iran’s top commanders provides one.
The killing of Iranian General Qassem Soleimani last week reinforces the North Korean view that the U.S. only takes such actions against states that lack a credible nuclear deterrent. More specifically, Trump’s choice of attack -- a covert drone strike against a high-level target -- feeds regime fears that any U.S. offensive against Pyongyang would start at the top.