THEY WORRY PRESIDENT TRUMP MAY

HAVE SHARED A CLASSIFIED

SURVEILLANCE IMAGES WHEN HE

TWEETED THIS PHOTO THAT APPEARS

TO SHOW AN IRANIAN ROCKET

EXPLODED ON A LAUNCH PAD.

THE PRESIDENT IN THAT TWEET

DISAVOWING ANY U.S. MEDDLING IN

THE EXPLOSION.

MEANWHILE TEHRAN HAS NOT

PUBLICLY POINTED THE FINGER AT

WASHINGTON, SAYING THE FAILURE

TO LAUNCH WAS DUE TO A TECHNICAL

ERROR.

A FORMER STATE DEPARTMENT SENIOR

ADVISOR WHO SERVED IN THE TRUMP

AND GEORGE W. BUSH

ADMINISTRATIONS ALSO SENIOR

FELLOW AT THE CENTER FOR

NATIONAL INTEREST AND AUTHOR OF

"SMART POWER BETWEEN DIPLOMACY

AND WAR".

CHRISTIAN, GOOD MORNING.

>> GOOD MORNING.

MIKE: WHAT'S YOUR REACTION TO

THE IRANIAN ROCKET EXPLODING ON

THE LAUNCH PAD AND THE PRESIDENT

SHARING THE PHOTO BEING FULLY

AWARE THAT HE HAS THE POWER TO

DO SO?

>> RIGHT, I DON'T KNOW IF THE

DOCUMENT WAS CLASSIFIED OR NOT.

WE HAVE BEEN COLLECTING OVERHEAD

IMAGERY, WELL KNOWN HISTORICAL

FACT SINCE 1959, THAT WAS THE

CORONA PROGRAM THAT PUT

SATELLITES OVER THE SOVIET UNION

FOR THE FIRST TIME.

THAT WAS FULLY DECLASSIFIED IN

1995, AND IF YOU GO BACK AND

LOOK AT SORT OF MOVIES AND

NONFICTION SINCE THE 90s, IT'S

BEEN A WELL ESTABLISHED FACT.

IT IS NOT NEWS TO ANYONE THAT

WE'RE TAKING OVERHEAD IMAGERY OF

IRAN AND OF COURSE THE PRESIDENT

AS YOU MENTIONED HAS THE

COMPLETE AUTHORITY TO DECLASSIFY

ANYTHING HE WANTS.

HE DOESN'T EVEN HAVE TO GO

THROUGH A PROCESS TO DO IT.

IT IS FROM HIS CONSTITUTIONAL

POWER TO SUPERVISE THE EXECUTIVE

BRANCH.

THE NATIONAL SECURITY

BUREAUCRACY, IF THEY THINK

OTHERWISE, THAT'S THEIR PROBLEM.

AS FAR AS THE ISSUE AT HAND,

IRAN LAUNCHING A SUPPOSED

SATELLITE SPACE LAUNCH VEHICLE,

THAT IS VERY ALARMING.

THAT'S THE PATH NORTH KOREA TOOK

TO GET AN INTERCONTINENTAL

BALLISTIC MISSILE AND EVEN A

FAILURE, EVEN ONES THAT ONLY

LASTS A COUPLE OF SECONDS

PRODUCES VERY VALUABLE

INFORMATION WITH WHICH YOU USE

TO PERFECT YOUR ROCKET.

THIS IS ALARMING IN THAT SENSE.

MIKE: UNITED STATES WAS PUBLIC

ABOUT CYBERATTACK, THE

REVOLUTIONARY GUARD USED TO

ATTACK OIL TANKERS, IS THAT A

SMART WAY TO SEND A SERIOUS

MESSAGE TO THE REGIME WITHOUT

ANY BLOODSHED?

>> YEAH, I THINK THE USE OF

CYBER WARFARE, AT WHICH WE HAVE

BEEN GETTING BIGGER AND BIGGER

CAPABILITIES AND OF COURSE IT'S

SORT OF AGAIN WIDELY KNOWN AND

WAS LEAKED UNFORTUNATELY TO THE

PUBLIC THAT WE USED CYBER -- WE

IN ISRAEL USED CYBER TOOLS TO

DISABLE PART OF IRAN'S NUCLEAR

PROGRAM DURING THE OBAMA

ADMINISTRATION.

THAT IS A USEFUL TOOL.

IT CAN'T BE THE ONLY TOOL,

THOUGH.

MUST ALSO HAVE SORT OF REAL LIFE

DETERRENCE WITH MILITARY FORCES.

MIKE: ON NORTH KOREA, THERE WERE

SOME HIGH-PROFILE FACE-TO-FACE

MEETINGS BETWEEN PRESIDENT TRUMP

AND LEADER KIM JONG-UN, EVEN A

HISTORIC ONE IN THE DMZ.

THE NORTH KOREANS ARE NOW SAYING

THE HOPES FOR MORE TALKS ARE

FADING.

YOUR THOUGHTS?

>> YOU KNOW, THAT'S SORT OF

CONSISTENT WITH WHAT THEY DO

WITH MESSAGING.

THEY DON'T SAY NEGATIVE THINGS

ABOUT THE PRESIDENT, BUT THEY

WILL SAY NEGATIVE THINGS ABOUT

THE SECRETARY OF STATE OR

NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISOR.

I THINK WE'RE IN A GOOD PLACE

WITH NORTH KOREA.

IT SEEMS THE PROGRESS ONLY

OCCURS WHEN THE TWO LEADERS GET

TOGETHER, WHEN IT GOES BELOW

THAT LEVEL, THERE REALLY AREN'T

FUNCTIONING WORKING GROUPS WHICH

IS A SHAME, BUT AS LONG AS THEY

ARE NOT TESTING NUCLEAR WEAPONS

OR LONG RANGE BALLISTIC MISSILES

MUCH BETTER THAN WE WERE IN THE

PREVIOUS TWO OR THREE

ADMINISTRATIONS.

MIKE: IS THAT A SIGN THAT

SECRETARY OF STATE POMPEO IS

GETTING UNDER THEIR SKIN?

THE FACT HE IS HOLDING FIRM AND

THEY SEEM IRRITATED BY IT?

>> THEY ARE EXTREMELY SENSITIVE

TO ANY SORT OF CRITICISM, AND I

THINK SECRETARY POMPEO IS JUST

STATING THE TRUTH.

SO THAT IS WHAT IT IS.

IT IS ALWAYS INTERESTING TO SEE

THE COLORFUL INSULTS THAT COME

BACK FROM THE KOREA CENTRAL NEWS

AGENCY WHEN YOU TALK ABOUT NORTH