Sen. Cruz Applauds President Trump’s Decision to Re-List North Korea as a State Sponsor of Terrorism

HOUSTON, Texas – U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) today issued the following statement praising President Donald Trump’s decision to re-list North Korea as a state sponsor of terrorism: 

“Today’s decision to re-list North Korea as a state sponsor of terrorism is a major milestone, and I applaud President Trump for taking decisive action.  This critical designation results from the Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act, which included legislation I introduced mandating a new terrorism assessment for North Korea. With this designation, the United States is sending a clear message that will reverberate throughout Pyongyang and every government that does business with the Kim dynasty: we will no longer harbor illusions about the nature and ambition of the North Korean government. The President’s decision carries a seriousness and sobriety that has long been absent in our North Korea policy, and I look forward to continuing working with him and my colleagues to pursue the denuclearization of North Korea.”

Sen. Cruz has long led the effort to re-list North Korea as a state sponsor of terrorism:

• In February 2016, Sen. Cruz sent a letter to President Obama expressing his concerns about the administration’s North Korea policy and outlining a specific course of action to address North Korea’s illegal nuclear tests, strengthen U.S. national security and return greater stability to East Asia and the Korean Peninsula.
• In February 2017, Sen. Cruz joined Sen. Cory Gardner (R-Colo.) in a letter to Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin that expressed grave concerns regarding continued aggression from the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK), and urging him to execute the full extent of financial sanctions and targeted financial measures allowed under current law.
• In March 2017, Sen. Cruz introduced legislation to re-list North Korea as a state sponsor of terrorism.
• In July 2017, Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act passed the House and the Senate, which included Sen. Cruz’s legislation mandating the State Department report on designating North Korea a state sponsor of terrorism.
• In October 2017, Sen. Cruz penned an op-ed for the New York Times, urging the State Department to re-list North Korea as a state sponsor of terrorism.

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