<p>The White House has finally decided to re-designate North Korea as a &ldquo;state sponsor of terror.&rdquo; ;</p>
<p>This is something that &ldquo;should have happened a long time ago,&rdquo; said President Trump, who made the announcement upon returning home from his 13-day trip to Asia. ;</p>
<p>North Korea appeared on the ignominious list for 20 years until the Bush Administration removed it in 2008; the only other nations on the list are Sudan, Iran, and Syria. ;</p>
<p>Trump calls the move part of a &#8220;maximum-pressure campaign&#8221; against the Kim regime. &ldquo;North Korea has repeatedly supported acts of international terrorism including assassinations on foreign soil. This designation will impose further sanctions and penalties on North Korea and related persons.&rdquo;</p>
<p>Anthony Ruggiero, former deputy director of the Treasury Department, points to Pyongyang&#8217;s assassination of Kim Jong Un&#8217;s half-brother as a &#8220;visible example&#8221; of the peninsula&#8217;s attacks on dissent overseas. &ldquo;A few years ago, after North Korea&rsquo;s cyberhack of Sony Pictures, it threatened a 9/11-style attack against US movie theaters. The Kim regime should not have been removed from the list in 2008 and the US government should have re-listed it sooner than today.&rdquo; ; ;</p>
<p>Others worry North Korea will interpret the designation as a confirmation that the White House is not serious about negotiations.</p>
<p>&ldquo;We need focused, unconditional negotiations that seek to freeze and roll back North Korea&rsquo;s nuclear weapons program,&#8221; argues Jon Rainwater of Peace Action. &#8220;This designation makes getting to the negotiating table, let alone securing an agreement, all the more difficult.&rdquo;</p>
<p>Secretary of State Rex Tillerson has been quick to point out that the change does not mean that the administration is abandoning the push for a peaceful solution. &ldquo;We still hope for diplomacy,&rdquo; said Tillerson. &ldquo;This is all part of continuing to turn this pressure up and we&rsquo;ve continued to turn the pressure up on North Korea by getting other countries to join and take actions on their own.&rdquo; ;</p>
<p>Tillerson called the re-designation &ldquo;symbolic,&rdquo; adding that &ldquo;practical effects may be limited.&rdquo; But he also said the decision sends a powerful message to the rest of the world and hopes it will &ldquo;disrupt and dissuade&rdquo; others from doing business with North Korea.</p>
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