Trump Is Driving North Korea To War And Cutting Off Chances For Diplomacy: Experts

By dubbing North Korea's leader "Rocket Man" on social media and shutting down opportunities for peaceful diplomatic talks, President Donald Trump has inflamed tensions with the rogue state and raised fears of a military conflict, experts say.

The conflict is increasingly likely, one top U.S. diplomat reportedly told U.S. lawmakers, because Trump's tough talk has greatly hindered chances of negotiations with Kim Jong Un's regime.

Joseph Yun, the State Department's special representative for North Korea policy, recently told congressional lawmakers that peace and diplomacy can work far better than Trump's use of terms like "Rocket Man" and nearly direct threats of "fire and fury," according to an NBC News report Wednesday, which cited unnamed sources.

Yun was evidently "frustrated" by not being able to relay his concerns to the White House. His efforts to at least rejuvenate potential negotiations between the U.S. and Pyongyang over nuclear and missile defense programs were described as on their "last legs," a U.S. official told the news outlet.

Previously, Trump's aggressive tone and choice of words–along with his unpredictable nature—were seen as a new tactic to essentially call Kim's bluff. But experts now believe the Trump administration would have to overwhelm Pyongyang with a solid sign of good faith.

"Unpredictability is only useful if it leaves the door open for Trump to make some kind of grand gesture to give the process a chance," Jenny Town, managing editor at North Korea-watching website 38 North, told Newsweek on Wednesday.

Town added that Trump's bombings of Syria and Afghanistan earlier this year and threats to pull out of international agreements have given the administration "very little credibility with North Korea if we were ever to get to negotiations."

She added, "Furthermore, his continued antagonism of Kim Jong Un personally makes it unlikely that North Korea would be willing to come to the table now without some grand gesture."

Indeed, Trump's takes on social media and in interviews have left little wiggle room for the North and Kim to save face with his people–a key factor in the survival of a regime and a leader viewed by the North Koreans as a demigod, like his father and grandfather before him.

Other than "Rocket Man," which Trump said on Twitter and before the United Nations General Assembly meeting last month, the president challenged Secretary of State Rex Tillerson's efforts to talk with North Korea earlier this month.

Tillerson later spun the president's tweets as fodder to build out his strategies for dealing with the North and Kim.

Thomas Lee, a professor of international law and a former naval intelligence officer, also downplayed the dire tone of Trump's public messages, since the North has specialized in sensational threats. Instead, Pyongyang may be thrown, and the current threat of military conflict could be viewed as "the worst" only because the North has never dealt with such strong rhetoric from the U.S.

"North Korea is used to immoderate rhetoric, just not from our side," Lee told Newsweek, "and I don't think we're close to war."

Instead, one way for tensions to de-escalate could begin now and early next year, before South Korea hosts the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, according to Lee.

"Between now and March, it's kind of a lull season in military exercise season," Lee said. "The Trump administration could say, 'Look, over the past few months tempers have flared. We're going to do a rest here and not conduct joint military exercises and honor the Olympics.'"