Eli Lake, Columnist

Negotiations Won't Stop North Korea From Getting a Nuke

Pyongyang has given the U.S. two options: acquiescence or war.

July 5, 2017 at 6:58 PM UTC

Eli Lake is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist covering national security and foreign policy. He was the senior national security correspondent for the Daily Beast and covered national security and intelligence for the Washington Times, the New York Sun and UPI.

Kim Jong-un has already won.
Source: STR/AFP/Getty Images

Provide news feedback or report an error

Site feedback:

Take our Survey

This article is for subscribers only.

When North Korea tested an intercontinental ballistic missile this week -- what its boy tyrant called a "gift to the American bastards" -- the response from the Trump administration was fairly conventional.

Secretary of State Rex Tillerson correctly called it an escalation. He announced America's intention to bring the matter before the U.N. Security Council. And he assured, "We will never accept a nuclear-armed North Korea."