Wilson Center
Robert Litwak is director of international security studies at the Wilson Center, a nonpartisan policy organization. He served as director for nonproliferation in President Clinton's first administration. He is author of Preventing North Korea's Nuclear Breakout.
How serious are people taking Trump's threat to North Korea? President Trump’s impromptu threat of hitting North Korea with fire and fury on Tuesday launched 48 hours of breaking news coverage: Montages of missiles detonating, graphics painting Trump and Kim Jong Un as mortal enemies. With mixed messages from Washington, many Americans are worried and confused. Should we be preparing for nuclear war or dismissing this as an empty threat?
Two inexperienced leaders and the prospect of nuclear war President Trump shook much of the world yesterday with his comment on future threats from North Korea. "They will be met with fire and fury like the world has never seen." North Korea's Kim Jung Un responded by saying he's reviewing plans to target America's airbase on the island territory of Guam. Today, some White House advisors are urging calm, but there's renewed concern about what might happen in one of the world's most dangerous regions. What more needs to be done to avoid catastrophic miscalculation by either side?
North Korea has miniaturized nuclear warhead The Washington Post reports that North Korea has crossed “a key threshold on the path to becoming a full-fledged nuclear power.” It's miniaturized a nuclear warhead so it can fit inside a guided missile. Robert Litwak, who was director of nonproliferation on President Clinton's National Security Council staff, is currently at the Woodrow Wilson International Center .
North Korean Nuclear Threat Resurfaces North Korea claimed today it has tested a thermonuclear weapon, also known as a "hydrogen bomb." That claim is being questioned, but the test alone was enough to generate an emergency session of the UN Security Council. Robert Litwak, who was director of nonproliferation on President Clinton's National Security Council, is now at the Wilson Center in Washington.
Trump's 'America First' goes missing abroad In the Middle East, President Trump is changing some policies of the Obama Administration—and reversing his own campaign attacks on Islam as a religion that "hates us." We hear about his visit to Saudi Arabia and what's at stake for the rest of his foreign excursion.
Terrorism and tweets, hate speech and murder Just days before an election, Britain is coping with a rash of deadly terrorism, and Prime Minister Theresa May is on the defensive. And again today, President Trump has tweeted criticism of the Mayor of London. Later, a double murder in Portland, Oregon has revealed the ugly past of a supposedly “progressive” city. One immediate question: is “hate speech” protected by the First Amendment?
The Trump agenda: where's the beef? President Trump says big things are happening. After celebrating a House bill on health care, he doesn’t yet have Senate agreement. With James Comey’s public testimony scheduled tomorrow, the President today tweeted his selection of a new FBI Director. Is the Chief Executive all style and no substance? Later, terror attacks in Iran and conflicting claims about who’s behind them.
Is the threat from Russia missing from the Russia meddling probe? There's much being made about the Trump administration's possible ties with Russia. But the bottom line is Russia's effort to influence American democracy. Do the President and his aides care enough to take action before voters go back to the polls?