North Korea - Obama Presidency Oral History North Korea Index / Locations Transcripts Jim Steinberg ...important in the context of both the North Korea problem and the Iranian problem t... ...to something that it hadn't foreseen? North Korea . We had a strategy going in, which i... ...framework to reach some agreements with North Korea to at least prevent the problem fro... ...colored by a series of provocations by North Korea . So a great deal of time was spent on... ...and the like. I wanted to start with North Korea , and I think we'll get to Fukushima i... ...I met with Chinese officials here. And North Korea was a major part of that, in additio... ...and my Chinese counterparts were about North Korea . I spent a lot of time with th... ...Chinese who were dealing directly with North Korea . I became quite convinced because o... ...did share our view about the danger of North Korea 's nuclear program and were trying t... ...more than we did, about instability in North Korea , because of the direct consequences t... ...just to bring this conversation on North Korea to a close, is to ask: As you loo... ...wanted to make about how to deal with North Korea ? Or did the steady stream of crisi... ...It was self-evident that the core of North Korea 's tactics in support of its strategi... ...patience was going to lead to change in North Korea . It was that simply we felt that w... ...we felt that we should not allow— North Korea only had leverage if we felt threatene... ...us that we didn't do was to acknowledge North Korea as a nuclear power. If you want to sa... ...can be solved. Just like with North Korea , some things just can't be solved. Bu... Show more... James Clapper ...Ebola, which we talked about a bit, North Korea 's nuclear arsenal, the Iran nuclea... ...in the fall of 2014 with regards to North Korea . You're involved in the retrieval o... ...and Kenneth Bae, who were imprisoned in North Korea . What was the story behind you... ...That's why when we'd have meetings on North Korea , I'd speak up about it. I was a... ...a similar arrangement in Pyongyang [ North Korea ]. We'd have an interest section ther... ...US citizens who were incarcerated in North Korea released, I'm not sure what led th... ...first cabinet-level official to go to North Korea since [former Secretary of State... ...narrow window that we had to get to North Korea to get these people, because there wa... ...the White House wanted me in and out of North Korea before the president went to China, s... ...in the relationship between the US and North Korea . While that wasn't in your purview fo... ...that anyone at that level had come to North Korea . So they were bitterly disappointe... ...bizarre things you've read about North Korea , they are all true. It is a bizarr... ...in part to handle security issues like North Korea . And yet this is right around the sam... ...than we were on Russia, or China, or North Korea . I'm not sure if that was the righ... Show more... John Brennan ...of achieving the objectives we wanted; North Korea comes to mind, certainly. But I thin... ...broadly or in particular cases like North Korea . I'm eager to hear about Iran, a... ...in Iran. We didn't make the progress in North Korea that we would have liked to have make... ...the globe. Why should Kim Jong-un in North Korea enter a negotiation and a deal with th... Robert Gates ...toward Condi Rice's outreach to North Korea in the final year of the Bus... Susan Rice ...nonproliferation, the Iran deal, North Korea , the nuclear security summits, a whol... ...dealing with Iran and nonproliferation— North Korea , basically everything we did, we di... ...climate. Or rogue states like Iran and North Korea . It's kind of basic but [laughs] it—i... Chuck Hagel ...put up all of these big billboards with North Korea and me, and so on and so on. So I'... ...Senator, we know that you have been to North Korea . And we know that you took money an... ...on and on and on. I've never been to North Korea in my life. I'm looking at him, and ... ...I said, “Senator, I have never been to North Korea in my life.” Well, the other members o... ...I'll say it again. I've never been to North Korea .” And he went on and on and on. He go... ...which was the term for the approach to North Korea , which was another issue that I kno... ...assess the administration's policy on North Korea from that time that you were there? Wa... ...very deeply involved or engaged in the North Korea portfolio. Through our security an... ...unhinged. Yes, he was a threat. Yes, North Korea was a threat. But the capabilities tha... Show more... Evan Medeiros ...of mass destruction] in Iraq and North Korea . I was fascinated and enthralled b... ...focused on East Asia, both China and North Korea . He was writing a book at the time. H... ...the global economic crisis, to Iran, to North Korea , but to the point at which it's sor... ...to deal with Japan, Korea—meaning North Korea and South Korea—Southeast Asia. It wa... ...on issues like the South China Sea and North Korea . It was building out the securit... ...usually so encumbered by its focus on North Korea . That dominates the agenda. We wer... ...in very practical ways related to North Korea . If we needed to conduct a trilatera... ...military exercise to signal to North Korea , we couldn't really do it. Th... ...our ability to implement our North Korea strategy, at a time when North Kore... ...North Korea strategy, at a time when North Korea was being unhelpful, provocative... ...that brought us together, which is North Korea 's nuclear and missile program. So w... ...interest in deterring and containing North Korea 's nuclear and missile activities. Bu... ...while the overall message was about North Korea and nuclear security, the not-so-subtl... ...we're still going to work together on North Korea issues. Trilateral military exercise... Show more... Load more Transcripts Related Topics go to the Russia Russia go to the Obama in the Senate Obama in the Senate go to the LGBTQ Policy LGBTQ Policy go to the Immigration Immigration go to the Democrats Democrats