Trump Declares N. Korea Threat Despite Assurances After Summit

President Donald Trump on Friday extended economic restrictions on North Korea, saying it poses an "unusual and extraordinary threat" to the United States, despite claiming last week that the country "is no longer a nuclear threat."

"The existence and risk of proliferation of weapons-usable fissile material on the Korean Peninsula and the actions and policies of the Government of North Korea continue to pose an unusual and extraordinary threat to the national security, foreign policy, and economy of the United States," Trump wrote in a notice issued Friday.

Trump tweeted last week, after returning from his summit meeting with North Korean Leader Kim Jong Un, "Just landed – a long trip, but everybody can now feel much safer than the day I took office. There is no longer a Nuclear Threat from North Korea. Meeting with Kim Jong Un was an interesting and very positive experience. North Korea has great potential for the future!"

Trump cancelled joint war games exercises with South Korea as part of the deal he reached with Kim, a move that drew criticism from Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman John McCain, R-Ariz., who said in a statement: "It is North Korea — through its nuclear and missile programs, aggressive behavior and egregious human rights violations — that poses the greatest threat to peace. And until North Korea takes concrete steps to change that, no concessions should be made and the sanctions must continue."

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