Interview With State Department Spokeswoman Marie Harf; North Korea Nuclear Threat; Report: North Korea's Cyber Army 6,000 Strong
BLITZER: We're following breaking news, disturbing information, an active shooter now reported at the William Beaumont Army Medical Center in El Paso, Texas. Janice Yu of CNN affiliate KTSM posting these photos just moments ago. The station reporting the El Paso police, they have turned over the scene to the military police, federal law enforcement on the scene as well. We're trying to get some more information on what is going on. We will update you as soon as we get more, but once an active shooter reported at this VA hospital, Veterans Administration hospital in El Paso, Texas. Meanwhile, there's other news we're following. A chilling new assessment at a time of high tension between United States and North Korea. South Korea now says the Kim Jong-un regime is closer than ever to developing a nuclear weapon capable of striking the United States. Let's go to our chief national security correspondent, Jim Sciutto. He has got details here for us. What are you finding out, Jim?</s>JIM SCIUTTO, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, the South Korean Defense Ministry report paints an alarming picture of North Korea's growing military capabilities, including a force of cyber-warriors, a growing invasion force to attack the South and progress on what has long been the chief concern of the U.S. national security community, miniaturizing a nuclear weapon to fit on a missile capable of hitting the U.S. homeland.</s>SCIUTTO (voice-over): It is a nightmare scenario, North Korea with the capacity to launch a nuclear-tipped missile threatening the U.S. West Coast. The new assessment by South Korea's Defense Ministry finds Pyongyang has edged a step closer to that capability. The North's ability to miniaturize a nuclear weapon, the report says, appears to have reached a significant level. South Korea assesses the North Korean missiles, such as Taepodong-2, already have the range to reach the U.S. mainland and that Pyongyang is now developing submarines that can fire ballistic missiles. The U.S. continues to believe, administration officials tell CNN, that the North has not yet achieved a capability to strike the U.S. with a nuclear-armed missile, though it has positioned missile defense systems close to North Korea to mitigate any threat.</s>JEN PSAKI, STATE DEPARTMENT SPOKESWOMAN: We obviously continue to closely monitor the situation on the Korean Peninsula and remain steadfast in our commitment of the defense of our allies, certainly including South Korea.</s>HANCOCKS: The North's greatest perceived threat remains to its neighbor, U.S. ally South Korea. Along the border with the south, the North has set up military posts, as well as artillery pieces and mechanized forces that the South says would allow for a quick invasion. And the North has other ways of attacking far from its borders. North Korea has a force of some 6,000 cyber-warriors, South Korea says, that it uses to launch cyber-attacks on government and military entities in the South. It's a threat the U.S. experienced firsthand as well, with the cyber-attack on Sony, which the administration blames on the North Korean government. So why is North Korea's Kim Jong-un building up his military now even as he offers renewed talks with his South Korean neighbor?</s>PAUL CARROLL, PLOUGHSHARES FUND: He has to double down on his resolve by showing that he is strong first. Before he can offer any kind of an olive branch, he has to have a very clear sword in the other hand.</s>SCIUTTO: There is a broad gap between possessing the technology and perfecting the capabilities that the U.S. and Russia, for instance, used to perfect that capability, putting a nuclear warhead on a missile that you can target properly. But the president has said many times he has to prepare for every contingency. That's why, Wolf, you have seen the U.S. deploy additional anti-missile capability in the region around North Korea.</s>BLITZER: It's a dangerous situation. Let's not forget there are still 30,000 or so U.S. troops along the DMZ between North and South Korea. Jim Sciutto, thanks very much. Let's get some more. Joining us, the deputy spokeswoman Marie Harf. Marie, thanks very much for coming in.</s>MARIE HARF, DEPUTY SPOKESWOMAN, STATE DEPARTMENT: Happy to be here.</s>BLITZER: What do you make of the South Korean report that North Korea now has a cyber-army of some 6,000 members? We earlier thought maybe 1,500 or so, but now 6,000. Is that consistent with what the U.S. government believes?</s>HARF: Without getting into specific numbers, we obviously don't talk about those intelligence assessments. Clearly, North Korea has a very significant cyber-capability. We have seen that just with the Sony Pictures situation over the past several weeks and months. We know they have a very aggressive capability and it has the potential to be very disruptive, as we saw again with Sony.</s>BLITZER: The administration still believes, the FBI, the State Department, the Department of Defense, National Security Agency, North Korea was in fact responsible for the cyber-attack on Sony Pictures?</s>HARF: Absolutely. All of the evidence that they have gathered throughout this investigation has led them to that conclusion. We have been very clear about that. That's why you saw just recently imposing sanctions on additional North Korean officials and entities as a result of that.</s>BLITZER: Did they outsource, though? Did they have help from any other party or individuals or was this a solely North Korean operation, from the U.S. government's perspective?</s>HARF: We don't have information that other governments were involved. We know the North Koreans planned and put this attack into place. It doesn't rule out the possibility that individuals, private individuals may have helped them. But we don't always outline all of what we know about how these attacks are undertaken or how this one was undertaken because we want to protect the way we know that.</s>BLITZER: Our reporter in Beijing, Will Ripley, went to this city in China which supposedly is the headquarters for a lot of these North Korean cyber-attackers, these cyber-warriors, if you will, this Bureau 121, as it is called. And they're based in this Chinese city. Is that consistent with your information?</s>HARF: Well, again, we don't have any information that other governments were involved in this attack on Sony Pictures. We do have conversations with the Chinese. Secretary Kerry spoke with his Chinese counterpart right after the Sony hack, the attack, to talk about the cyber-issue, among other things, because we know there's a significant threat in the world here and we know that China can play a more helpful role if they could do so.</s>BLITZER: Have you asked the United States government, has asked China to shut down the North Korean cyber operation inside China?</s>HARF: Well, we've talked broadly with China about confronting these kinds of offensive cyberattacks. We know U.S. companies have been at the receiving end of them. We know the U.S. government has been at the receiving end of them. So we've talked to them about how we can work together more on this issue going forward.</s>BLITZER: Some of the experts, the cyberattack experts in the United States, outside of the U.S. government, private firms, they've raised doubts about whether North Korea was really capable of doing it. One of the things they pointed to is the documents, the e-mails that were released on the Internet. Very embarrassing e-mails to Sony Pictures, which maybe a disgruntled employee might have wanted to release, as opposed to the North Korean regime, which may not necessarily be following all the sort of sordid details of Hollywood along those lines. What do you make of those accusations, that this wasn't necessarily a North Korean operation? That there may have been a disgruntled employee who leaked this information or caused this damage to Sony Pictures?</s>HARF: Well, we are very confident in our assessment that the North Korean government is responsible for this attack. That does not preclude the possibility that other private individuals somewhere around the world with some reason to help the North Korean government may have done so. Now, we're not always going to get publicly into what we know or don't know or confirmed things one way or the other. But those two things are not mutually exclusive.</s>BLITZER: Are you going to step up sanctions on North Korea even more than you've done in recent days?</s>HARF: Well, the E.O., the executive order that the president signed last week is a very broad one. And it gives us the ability, at a time of our choosing in the future, to impose additional sanctions on individuals or entities. A very broad executive order, as written, on North Korean government officials, members of their leadership party. So I don't have anything to preview about that, but we certainly could.</s>BLITZER: Will the State Department once again bring North Korea back on the list of state sponsors of terror?</s>HARF: Well, there's a process underway right now, and we're looking at that. North Korea is one of the most heavily sanctioned countries in the world, so they're already under incredible pressure, but people are looking at that. And if, and when, we have a change to announce, we will do so.</s>BLITZER: All right. Marie, I want you to stand by. We've got more questions on what's going on, not only in North Korea but in Iraq with regards ISIS. There's concern. But there's new information coming in on the breaking news that we've been following. A shooting that's going on at the V.A. clinic adjacent to the William Beaumont Medical Center in El Paso, Texas. CNN affiliate KTSM is posting photos. You can see them right there. The station reports that the El Paso police have turned over the scene to U.S. military personnel. The U.S. military police, federal law enforcement authorities are now on the ground. We're getting more information. We're going on check in with our sources there. Stand by. Much more coming up right after this.