Bolton Speech Conspicuously Silent on N. Korea
The Friday event, at the Washington Omni Shoreham, was by invitation only. My friend, a very experienced news correspondent, forwards these notes in exchange for a promise of anonymity. I edited slightly for spelling and grammar:
Bolton sounded fine, convincing enough, on the need for UN reform. I kept waiting for mention of N. Korea, thought it might be coming when he touched on Iran, but no. Wonder whether it was deliberate — [the Administration] or State Dept saying, “Don’t tread on that sensitive topic when we’re trying to get six-party talks restarted while also dealing with counterfeit issue.”
That’s consistent with what I’ve heard before. It’s hard to top “hellish nightmare,” my best efforts to encourage it notwithstanding. Amb. Bolton certainly had something to do with this resolution, but he hasn’t been vocal on the North Korea issue during his tenure. One hopes that will change before much more time passes.