A former U.S. Navy admiral has said that North Korea will not wind back its nuclear program and will need to be strongly deterred, possibly through nuclear weapons positioned in Asia.
 
In an interview with the Sydney Morning Herald, Patrick Walsh, a retired four-star admiral who commanded U.S. naval forces in the Pacific, said that he is not optimistic about moving toward a denuclearized state with the existing goals the U.S. has for the Korean Peninsula.
 
Walsh said he thinks the prevailing view will be that North Korea is now a nuclear state and it will require a much stronger deterrence posture on the part of allies in the region.
 
In a frank assessment, the former naval leader warned that strong deterrence would carry the risk of miscalculation leading to conflict because the closed-off Kim Jong-un regime can't be trusted to correctly interpret moves by the U.S. and its allies.
 
As countries such as Japan and South Korea inevitably strengthen their defense postures, Walsh said it was vital the region be "very clear and very credible" in transmitting to North Korea what their posture is so there is no surprise.
 
Walsh described stronger deterrence as a situation where there's more muscle but also more transparency and really clear communication.
 
He said when Washington talked about all options being on the table, tactical nuclear weapons were "probably part of the conversation," adding such a drastic move would show the U.S. is serious about this issue.
 
Walsh who served as head of the Pacific Fleet from 2009 to 2012 is now a vice-president with global cyber security firm FireEye Inc.

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