North Korea expert warns US can 'never take their eye off' Kim Jong Un following missile test during Iran war
A North Korea expert told Fox News Digital that the United States "can never take their eye off" Kim Jong Un and the Korean Peninsula after Pyongyang test-fired a missile...
By Fox News · Fox News
A North Korea expert told Fox News Digital that the United States "can never take their eye off" Kim Jong Un and the Korean Peninsula after Pyongyang test-fired a missile this week amid the ongoing conflict with Iran. The launch of the short-range ballistic missile — which Japan said landed in the waters off North Korea ’s east coast — unfolded Thursday ahead of joint military exercises to be conducted by the U.S. and South Korea later this month. "There's this unsettled conflict on the Korean Peninsula. And Kim Jong Un, a very unpredictable leader that seeks attention, that is something the United States can never take their eye off," retired Navy Rear Adm. Mark Montgomery, a senior fellow at Foundation for Defense of Democracies, told Fox News Digital on Friday. "So we have all these challenges in the Middle East, these challenges with Russia and Ukraine, these challenges with China pressuring and trying to coerce Taiwan . You can never forget that the North Korean challenge to South Korea is sitting right there, and there are no constraints on Kim Jong Un," Montgomery added. "There's no version of an empowered elite or a population or a military that could unseat him. So we should always keep our eye on him, pay attention to him, and make sure we're constantly deterring any provocative behavior." US SAYS NORTH KOREA MISSILE LAUNCH POSES NO IMMEDIATE THREAT, 'CONSULTING CLOSELY' WITH ALLIES U.S. Indo-Pacific Command said following North Korea’s launch on Thursday that, "We are aware of the missile launch and are consulting closely with our allies and partners." "Based on current assessments, this event does not pose an immediate threat to U.S. personnel or territory, or to our allies," it added. "The United States remains committed to the defense of the U.S. homeland and our allies in the region." Montgomery said Friday that "whenever North Korea does a ballistic missile launch, you have to think there's any of three countries that could be the intended recipient…