What Mattis said on a Korean War last May

05/10/2017

War with North Korea would be “catastrophic,” Defense Secretary Mattis says

By Kathryn Watson
May 28, 2017

U.S. Secretary of Defense James Mattis says that war with North Korea — should tensions ever come to that — would be “catastrophic.”

“A conflict in North Korea, John, would be probably the worst kind of fighting in most people’s lifetimes,” Mattis told CBS News’ “Face the Nation” host John Dickerson in his first official interview as defense secretary.

The North Korean regime has hundreds of artillery cannons and rocket launchers within range of one of the most densely populated cities on Earth — Seoul, the capital of South Korea, Mattis said.

North Korea is a threat to the surrounding region, including Japan, China and Russia, he said.

“But the bottom line is it would be a catastrophic war if this turns into a combat if we’re not able to resolve this situation through diplomatic means,” Mattis said.