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Article snippet: MORE’s rhetoric has raised expectations for an ironclad nuclear deal with North Korea following his historic summit with Kim Jong Un, posing diplomatic and political risks for the White House if the unpredictable country fails to follow through. Trump even declared that North Korea no longer poses a nuclear threat, a statement contradicted by his own pick to serve as U.S. ambassador to South Korea, and a remark that experts said could be a serious mistake. North Korea has taken no verifiable steps toward dismantling its weapons program and the two sides still disagree on what it means to denuclearize. By declaring the problem “solved,” as Trump did Friday, he is creating a disincentive for Pyongyang as it considers making concessions to Washington in nuclear talks. “Trump has undercut his negotiators and made it more difficult for [Secretary of State Mike] Pompeo to lead a process to nail down the definition of complete denuclearization,” said Davenport. Trump has made nuclear diplomacy with North Korea his No. 1 foreign policy goal and failing to secure an agreement would be a major blow both at home and abroad. The president even acknowledged during a post-summit news conference the possibility his hopes for a deal could be dashed. “I think he’s going to do these things,” he said of Kim. “I may be wrong. I mean, I may stand before you in six months and say, ‘Hey, I was wrong.’ I don’t know that I’ll ever admit that, but I’ll find some kind of an excuse.” Pulli... Link to the full article to read more