The war in Ukraine makes it even more unlikely North Korea will denuclearize, Seoul’s former Ambassador to Kiyv Lee Yang-goo told NK News in an exclusive interview.

Pyongyang will likely see any sort of disarmament deal with the West as likely to fail in similar fashion to the Budapest Memorandum, which saw Ukraine hand over Russian nuclear weapons in its territory in exchange for security assurances, he said.

“North Korea already did not have much willingness to denuclearize. But looking at the graphic scenes coming out of Ukraine, Pyongyang will further solidify their internal and external justification for possessing nuclear