Former Chief of Staff Kelly Criticizes Trump's North Korea Policy... "Kim Jong-un Will Not Give Up Nukes"

[Image source=AP Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Jeong Hyunjin] Former White House Chief of Staff John Kelly strongly criticized the current administration, saying that although President Donald Trump made efforts regarding North Korea policy, it did not go well.

On the 13th (local time), according to U.S. media outlets such as The Atlantic, Kelly spoke for 75 minutes about President Trump's North Korea policy and retaliatory measures against impeachment witnesses during a lecture held the previous evening at Drew University in New Jersey. This is the first time Kelly, who was dismissed at the end of 2018, has publicly commented on North Korea diplomacy.

Kelly described the Trump administration's North Korea diplomacy policy as "futile." He said that from mid-2018 to June 2019, President Trump met with North Korean State Affairs Commission Chairman Kim Jong-un three times trying to persuade him, but "he will never give up his nuclear weapons." This is a criticism that despite two summits and a meeting at Panmunjom, North Korea and the U.S. did not achieve significant progress in denuclearization. Kelly said, "I am mostly an optimist but also a realist, and I did not think Kim would do anything other than play us for a while," adding, "He (Kim) did it quite effectively."

Although Kelly has spoken publicly before, he had never revealed his stance on North Korea policy nor criticized the Trump administration so directly. His remarks align with those of former White House National Security Council (NSC) advisor John Bolton, who attended the first North Korea-U.S. summit in June 2018. Bolton, who was dismissed in September last year, described Trump's North Korea policy as a "disaster."

Kelly also criticized the treatment of Lieutenant Colonel Alexander Vindman, who testified unfavorably against President Trump during the impeachment hearings and faced personnel retaliation. He said Vindman was not at fault and only acted according to his military training. Kelly emphasized that President Trump's request to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to investigate former Vice President Joe Biden was "an illegal order," stating, "We teach them 'Do not follow illegal orders. If you receive such orders, regardless of who gave them, raise the issue and inform your superior.'"

Meanwhile, President Trump immediately responded on his Twitter, saying, "I did not fire John Kelly fast enough, and he knew very well he could not handle it," adding, "He was not fit to be Chief of Staff." He continued, "He came in looking good but left groaning," and "Despite having military and legal duties, he cannot keep his mouth shut." Trump also mentioned that Kelly's wife once separately told him, "My husband respects the president very much and will speak well of him," to which Trump replied, "Wrong!"