The White House’s original choice for U.S. ambassador to South Korea is no longer expected to be nominated after he privately expressed disagreement in late December with the Trump administration’s North Korea policy, according to people familiar with the matter. McMaster said on Jan. 23 that President Trump has "made a significant difference" in moving talks forward with North Korea. A senior administration official confirmed this week that the White House had moved on to other potential candidates. The “answer is not, as some Trump administration officials have suggested, a preventive military strike,” Cha wrote. He participated in the Six-Party talks with North Korea as the deputy head of the U.S. delegation and was generally considered hawkish on security issues involving the North.

Source: Washington Post January 30, 2018 20:30 UTC