A former U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. says Secretary of State Hillary Clinton doesn't seem to grasp the scope of the threat posed by Pyongyang's nuclear program.

John Bolton made the remark in an article titled, “Hillary Clinton's North Korea Naivete,” contributed to the Los Angeles Times on Wednesday.

The longtime conservative said Clinton’s establishment of a U.S. position which says the North must "completely and verifiably eliminate its nuclear weapons activities” leaves the door open for Pyongyang to retain what nuclear weapons it has produced thus far, so long as the regime remains “peaceful.”

He said leaving Pyongyang with any nuclear capability would not help eliminate the problems the U.S. has been attempting to solve in regards to the North’s nuclear program.

Bolton added it was unfortunate that Clinton has made no reference to the global scope of North Korea's threat, notably in the Middle East, where nuclear and ballistic missile proliferation remain key concerns.