Run N Korea deal past US congress, Democrats tell Trump
June 12, 2018 07:17
Six top US lawmakers from the opposition Democratic party have demanded that any potential deal with North Korea be subject to Congressional oversight.
"Regardless of what happens in the hours ahead, the administration must consult with Congress on North Korea. Any potential deal must be subject to Congressional oversight," the Democratic leadership in the US House of Representative said in a joint statement.
The Congress, they said, had insisted on robust monitoring under the Iranian nuclear deal and should demand nothing less with regard to North Korea. The Democratic Obama administration then had bypassed the Congress.
According to the Democratic lawmakers, the US-North Korea summit is a historic opportunity to build a more secure, stable Korean peninsula and to reassert American leadership in Asia.
"We all want to see diplomacy succeed with North Korea -- indeed, diplomatic engagement is the only way to deal with this crisis," they said.
"Support from our partners and an international consensus will be essential to a successful outcome to high-stakes nuclear diplomacy with Pyongyang," the lawmakers said.
A deal that preserves the status quo in terms of North Korea's nuclear capability while trading away US ability to counter their nuclear aggression and proliferation and allow them global market access by removing sanctions is unacceptable, they warned.
The lawmakers said that the tough negotiation necessary to achieve an agreement that leads to lasting peace will require the support of allies.
They also expressed deep concern over the administration's sidelining of diplomacy and undermining of American leadership on the global stage.
"We have no confirmed Ambassador to South Korea, no Assistant Secretary for Asia, and no senior official focused on North Korea. The administration has sought deep cuts to our international affairs budget and senior State Department officials have fled to the exits," they said.
"Most recently, with his behaviour at the G-7 summit, the President alienated our closest friends at a time when the United States should be affirming the western alliance as the cornerstone of global security," the Democratic leadership in the House said.
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