Don`t expect North Korea to disarm: Ex-Obama aide

The former top White House official on counter-proliferation says diplomacy is unlikely to get N Korea to give up its nuclear weapons and the best to hope for is a verifiable freeze in its production of fissile material.

Washington: The former top White House official on counter-proliferation says diplomacy is unlikely to get North Korea to give up its nuclear weapons and the best to hope for is a verifiable freeze in its production of fissile material.

Gary Samore, who resigned from his White House position in January, yesterday said it`s not practical to achieve nuclear disarmament unless there`s a change of leadership in Pyongyang or a fundamental change in the strategy of its ally China. Samore told a forum on US-Korean affairs that a more attainable goal is a moratorium on nuclear and missile tests that would delay the North`s progress toward having a weapon that can hit the US. North Korea has offered to negotiate after months of provocations and a February nuclear test. PTI