President Donald Trump suggested at the White House Thursday that a 2011 Libya style intervention could occur in North Korea if a deal is not reached to fully denuclearize the country.
WATCH:
“If you look at that model with Gaddaffi, that was a total decimation. We went in there to beat him. Now, that model would take place if we don’t make a deal most likely. But if we make a deal, I think Kim Jong un is going to be very, very happy,” Trump declared.
The President said “nothing has changed” in terms of planning a summit between the two countries and noted that if Kim Jong Un were to give up his nuclear weapons that “he’d be in his country and running his country. His country would be very rich. His people are tremendously industrious. In terms of what they do, hardworking incredible people.”
The remarks are the farthest Trump has gone to describe a potential deal with North Korea and how economic benefits would be bestowed upon the country if they were to give up their nuclear weapons. North Korea however has threatened to cancel the upcoming summit over ongoing drills on the Korean peninsula.
North Korea’s statement late Tuesday declared “if the United States is trying to drive us into a corner to force our unilateral nuclear abandonment, we will no longer be interested in such dialogue and cannot but reconsider our proceeding to the DPRK-US summit.”