U.S. State Secretary Rex Tillerson speaks during a press briefing after U.S. President Donald Trump designated the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) as a state sponsor of terror at the White House in Washington D.C. Nov. 20, 2017. (Xinhua/Shen Ting)
U.S. President Donald Trump on Monday designated the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) as a state sponsor of terror, vowing to slap sanctions against the Asian nation.
U.S. experts said the move is likely to escalate the ongoing confrontation between Pyongyang and Washington and dampen the prospect for a peaceful settlement of the crisis.
Later, U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said the sanctions are very symbolic, and their practical effects may be limited.
RE-LISTING PLUS SANCTION
In a cabinet meeting, Trump said that "the United States is designating North Korea as a state sponsor of terrorism," moving the country back into the list which also include Iran, Sudan and Syria.
"It should have happened a long time ago. It should have happened years ago," he said, noting that the U.S. Treasury Department on Tuesday will announce an additional "large" sanction against the DPRK as part of the U.S. "maximum pressure campaign to isolate" the Asian nation.
However, U.S. experts and officials argued on condition of anonymity that Pyongyang does not meet the criteria for the designation, which requires evidence that a country has repeatedly provided support for acts of international terrorism.
The move will be largely symbolic, as Pyongyang has already been heavily sanctioned, the experts added.
The DPRK was removed from the list by President George W. Bush in 2008 to resolve the nuclear crisis on the Peninsula, after Washington's years' failing efforts to accuse Pyongyang of backing terrorism.
White House officials previously blamed the DPRK for killing a man in a Malaysian airport and murdering U.S. citizen Otto Warmbier, both of which were resolutely denied by Pyongyang.
TIT-FOR-TAT
Trump said that one of the primary goals of his Asia trip on Nov. 3-14 was to pursue the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, which was listed by the White House as the first goal of almost each and every stop.
The DPRK "must be lawful," said Trump, adding: "It must end its unlawful nuclear and ballistic missile development, and cease all support for international terrorism -- which it is not doing."
Washington has urged countries in Asia and Africa to exert "maximum" pressure on Pyongyang beyond the UN Security Council resolutions, such as diplomatic isolation of, degradation and even cessation of financial and military ties with the Asian country.
It also sent three aircraft carrier battle groups earlier this month to the waters near the Peninsula, the first such scale in ten years, to conduct a military exercise.
For its part, Pyongyang on Friday responded that instead of urging the DPRK to return to talks, Washington should repent its action that put the Peninsula in danger of a nuclear war.
"As the prevailing situation shows, the United States seeks to bring down the DPRK by force of arms and take hold of world supremacy, not for negotiated settlement of the issue," read an article in the official Rodong Sinmun daily, adding the United States should "abandon a daydream that the DPRK would bow to its brigandish demand."
U.S. GENERAL WORRIES
Trump's decision "will increase the tension between the United States and North Korea," said Darrell West, an analyst at the Brookings Institution.
The DPRK top leader Kim Jong Un may take this as a provocative action and will likely respond in a negative way, he explained.
"There is certainly a psychological impact, but one that is counterproductive if we are hoping to defuse the situation," said Jenny Town, assistant director at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, told Xinhua in an interview Monday.
"This is simply another round of escalation in an increasingly tense situation," Town said. "It also sends the message that the United States is unlikely to enter into negotiations any time soon, as this type of action will be seen as another hostile act by Pyongyang."
Harry Kazianis, director of defense studies at the Center for the National Interest, also told media that Trump's announcement "just further cements a dangerous game of escalatory brinksmanship where neither side is giving the other any off-ramp."
