N. Korea taking aim at Bolton
Remarks decried as ‘dim-sighted’
SEOUL, South Korea — North Korea dismissed remarks by President Donald Trump’s national security adviser, John Bolton, as “dim-sighted” Saturday, after he said the North would have to show more evidence that it was ready to give up nuclear weapons before Trump would hold another meeting with its leader, Kim Jong Un.
It was the latest signal of impatience from North Korea, which has grown increasingly strident since the second summit between Kim and Trump, held in Hanoi, Vietnam, in February, ended abruptly without a deal and with Kim’s return home without sanctions relief.
In an interview with the Bloomberg News agency Wednesday, Bolton said a
U.S. Sen. Tom Cotton and his wife, Anna Peckham, know how important neonatal intensive care units are. They spent much of December 2016 at a Washington, D.C., hospital as their second-born son, Daniel, struggled to overcome respiratory distress syndrome.
On Friday, they toured the newborn intensive care unit at UAMS Medical Center in Little Rock, before visiting Arkansas Children’s Hospital.
At each location, they were briefed by medical experts.
Daniel, accompanied by his big brother, Gabriel, seemed to enjoy stopping by the children’s hospital. The highlight for the kids was a trip to the rooftop to see Angel One, the medical helicopter.
Afterward, Cotton, a Republican from Dardanelle, said he appreciated the opportunity to learn about the medical centers and their lifesaving work.
In May, they’ll participate in a congressional chef cookoff, part of the annual March of Dimes Gourmet Gala.
“For Anna and me, because Daniel was in the [neonatal intensive care unit], we’re big supporters of March of Dimes and programs that benefit babies who are struggling,” Cotton said. “Being here at the Children’s Hospital and earlier at UAMS’ NICU is personally very meaningful for us.
“We understand what it’s like whenever your baby is struggling to stay alive,” he said.
“We’ve had our baby taken out of our hospital room and taken to a NICU,” Cotton said. He remembers what it was like “to go there and not be able to touch him for the first four days of his life.
“Fortunately, he only spent two weeks there,” Cotton said. “Some of these parents have to spend months here.”
In an interview, Dr. Rick Barr, pediatrician in chief at Arkansas Children’s Hospital, said the medical field is making significant progress in such cases.
“Kids as young as 23 weeks’ gestation, just barely over 5 months’ gestation … routinely survive now. That didn’t happen when I was training 25 years ago,” he said. “And those kids are surviving without significant medical issues down the road. That’s where the true advancements have been made.”
Asked why the survival rates have risen, Barr said, “It’s just great medical care.
“We know a lot more than we used to about lung development, about brain development, and how we can really make sure we’re maximizing their outcomes,” he added.
Hill hosts member of U.K. Parliament
Rehman Chishti, a Conservative member of the British Parliament, visited Arkansas last week, attending the monthly meeting of the Political Animals Club, meeting students and faculty members at North Little Rock High School and traveling around the 2nd Congressional District with U.S. Rep. French Hill, a Republican from Little Rock.
The two lawmakers are members of the British American Parliamentary Group, a program sponsored by the U.S. State Department’s bureau of educational and cultural affairs.
Chishti, who represents Rainham and Gillingham southeast of London, has made four trips to Arkansas since joining the program in 2017.
“I think it’s a great state,” he said. “It’s got jobs, opportunity, prosperity. It has a massive military heritage.”
Chishti’s constituency — or district — has a proud military heritage of its own. The Corps of Royal Engineers has been based in that area for more than two centuries.
Hill and Chishti have worked to establish partnerships between schools in the two countries.
The ties are positive, Hill said Wednesday.
“We’re excited about these kids learning together through Skype and Google Hangouts. I think it’s a great opportunity for young people to make that cross-cultural connection,” he said.
Parliament, like Congress, is in the midst of its Easter recess.
Back in London, Brexit remains on the agenda.
Chishti said the people have endorsed Britain’s exit from the European Union, noting the results of the 2016 national referendum.
“The prime minister, myself, every other Conservative member of Parliament is working as hard as we can to ensure that we deliver on that public mandate and leave the European Union as quickly, as swiftly as we can,” he said.
2 students named McLarty Scholars
Two University of Arkansas Clinton School of Public Service students have been named McLarty Scholars.
The award will enable Andrea Zekis and Brady Ruffin to complete semester-long fellowships at Vital Voices Global Partnership, a Washington-based nonprofit group that seeks to “identify and invest in women leaders around the world.”
Donna Cochran McLarty and her husband, Mack, along with other family members established the scholars program in 2002.
Donna McLarty, one of the global partnership’s co-founders, currently serves as its chairman emeritus. Her husband is a former White House chief of staff, counselor to the president and special envoy to the Americas.
In a news release, she said Zekis and Ruffin “have demonstrated their commitment to addressing human-rights issues and empowerment in their own communities and beyond.
“We are honored to play a part in fostering their exceptional dedication to public service by connecting them to [Vital Voices Global Partnership],” she added.
Zekis, a graduate of the University of Evansville, holds master’s degrees from Syracuse University and the University of Central Arkansas.
Ruffin graduated from the University of Mississippi last year with an undergraduate degree in integrated marketing communications.
While in Washington, Zekis and Ruffin “will conduct research and evaluation of the interaction, strength and effectiveness of [Vital Voices’] global network of women leaders,” the news release stated. third summit would be possible only after “a real indication from North Korea that they’ve made the strategic decision to give up nuclear weapons.”
Speaking to the North’s official Korean Central News Agency, First Vice Foreign Minister Choe Son Hui called Bolton’s remark “nonsense.”
“We never expected anything logical from Bolton, but as national security adviser, he should at least know the context of dialogue that took place between the two leaders regarding a third summit before he says anything,” Choe was quoted as saying. “I’m not sure if he meant to be humorous, but for me, his comments were unattractive and foolish.”
Choe described Bolton’s comments as having “no charm” and being “dim-sighted,” and said the United States has nothing to gain with such remarks. But she stopped short of asking Washington to remove Bolton from the nuclear talks.
After her comments, South Korean media speculated that there might be some sort of communication between the U.S. and North Korea over a third summit.
Her criticism was much softer than the North’s past rhetoric directed at the U.S. and South Korea in tense times. In 2003, North Korea’s state media called Bolton “human scum” after he described then-North Korean leader Kim Jong Il, the late father of Kim Jong Un, as a “tyrannical dictator.”
North Korea’s recent criticism appears to be a continuation of its frustration at deadlocked nuclear negotiations with the United States. Earlier last week, the North tested a new weapon and demanded that U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo be removed from the nuclear negotiations. But the country is still avoiding harsh rhetoric toward the U.S. and directly criticizing Trump in an apparent effort to keep diplomacy alive.
In Hanoi, Kim offered a partial end to the North’s nuclear weapons program — dismantling the Yongbyon complex where it produces fuel for bombs, but not the weapons themselves — in exchange for the end of Washington’s most biting sanctions, such as a ban on coal and other key North Korean exports.
Trump has said smaller agreements may be reached but that he still wants a “big deal” to rid North Korea of its nuclear arms capabilities.
Earlier this month, Kim said he would consider meeting Trump again, but only if Washington offered a new proposal that he could accept by the end of the year. On Wednesday, he attended the test of what his country called “a new-type tactical guided weapon,” signaling that his regime was getting frustrated with Washington’s all-or-nothing approach and might return to more provocative weapons tests of the kind seen in 2017.
Experts say Wednesday’s demonstration wasn’t a prohibited test of a medium- or long-range ballistic missile that could scuttle the nuclear negotiations.
On Thursday, Kwon Jong Gun, director general of the Department of American Affairs of the North Korean Foreign Ministry, accused Pompeo of possessing a “mean character” and blocking progress in talks between Pyongyang and Washington.
Kwon blamed Pompeo for the collapse of the Hanoi talks and suggested that even if high-level dialogue resumed, Pompeo should yield his place as chief negotiator to someone “more careful and mature in communicating with us.”
“Nothing’s changed,” Pompeo said Friday, when asked about the North Korean demand. “I’m still in charge of the team.”
Both Kwon and Choe refrained from criticizing Trump and instead emphasized that Kim remained on good terms with him. North Korean officials appeared to believe that the unusual chemistry between the two leaders — Trump once said he and Kim were “in love” — could help the North get a better deal if talks resumed.
But top U.S. officials, like Bolton and Pompeo, insist that Washington should settle for nothing less than a full dismantling of the North’s entire arsenal of nuclear, chemical and biological weapons, as well as their production facilities, before it lifts sanctions.
Choe described Bolton’s comments as having “no charm” and being “dim-sighted,” and said the United States has nothing to gain with such remarks.