A new CIA report reveals that North Korea does not intend to give up their nuclear stockpile any time soon — though they may open a western burger chain in Pyongyang to soften the blow, according to a Tuesday NBC News report.
The hamburger concession is reportedly both a nod to President Donald Trump’s love of fast food, as well as a cheeky reference to Trump’s 2016 statement about wanting to talk nuclear weapons with Kim Jong Un while “eating a hamburger on a conference table.”
Per NBC, the CIA report came out at the same time as a new paper by Stanford professor Siegfried Hecker who, having toured the North Korean nuclear facilities four times, says it could take them 15 years to dismantle everything.
Though it seems that total nuclear disarmament is unlikely, talks about minor concessions between the U.S. and North Korea are reportedly ongoing. The United States has taken human rights demands off the table, while North Korea has not yet demanded removal of U.S. troops in South Korea.
The summit between the two countries’ leaders, initially scheduled for June 12 in Singapore, was officially cancelled last week, though emissaries have continued diplomatic trips and talks, leaving the event’s fate in limbo.
