North Korea has been fanning concerns of War War 3 with a series of missile tests threatening the US overseas territory of Guam and allies in South Korea and Japan.
Despotic leader Kim Jong-un extended an olive branch towards Seoul shortly before the start of the Olympic Games last week but experts have been wary of his unexpected diplomatic streak.
Former CIA North Korea analyst Jung Pak said a lack of missile testing did not mean North Korea had altogether stopped weapons production.
She said: “I see the Olympic outreach as a tactical move and not a strategic one.
“Just because North Korea is not testing missiles or nukes it doesn’t mean that they are not developing or improving their existing weapons.”
North Korea agreed to reopen communication channels with its long-time enemy South Korea and dispatching his sister to witness the opening ceremony of the Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang.
A panel of military experts testified in front of the US Senate Intelligence Committee claiming North Korea will continue to pose a threat to world peace throughout 2018.
Ms Pak welcomed the warning, saying it reflected previous analysis expressing wariness of the sudden diplomatic approach to the Korean peninsula crisis.
She told CBS: “I am really happy about those statements. What these three principals have said about North Korea reflects the analysis of the intelligence community and that’s great.”
Defense Intelligence Agency Director Lt. Gen. Robert Ashley said intelligence suggested North Korea had not changed its strategy, warning US President Donald Trump should not be “misled” by the recent diplomatic talks between Pyongyang and Seoul.
He said: “No changes in the strategic calculus. As a matter of fact, under the Kim Jong regime, we’ve seen a much more deliberate effort in terms of readiness. Very different from his father.
“We have a million-man army, 70 percent of which are south of Pyongyang, and they train in very deliberate fashion. His strategic calculus has not changed.
“We should not be misled by the events that are taking place around the Olympics.”