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Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL), the Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on East Asian and Pacific Affairs, today issued the following statement regarding North Korea’s cyber-attack against Sony Pictures:

“The fact that North Korea was willing to conduct a flagrant cyber-attack against a major corporation and even threaten violence against Americans attending movie theaters across the country is another example of the devastating consequences that result when America projects weakness. I call on the President to respond swiftly to undo the damage to freedom of speech and expression caused by Sony’s decision to not release ‘The Interview.’ I also look forward to hearing from administration officials what the United States’ response to this blatant violation of America’s sovereignty and security will be.

“I have long argued that the Bush administration’s decision to delist North Korea as a state sponsor of terrorism was the wrong one. I urge the administration to relist North Korea immediately. North Korea continues to threaten its neighbors, develop its nuclear weapons program, and imprison thousands of its civilians in modern day gulags. It is also important to remember that just last year, Panama intercepted a North Korean ship that was involved in transferring weapons between North Korea and Cuba and that Cuba has been a staunch defender of Pyongyang at the United Nations.

“When rogue regimes attack and threaten America and pay no consequences, it only makes us less safe. The events of the past week should serve as a reminder that, from East Asia to our own hemisphere, this President’s foreign policy is a disaster. We need an immediate course correction before more damage is done to America’s credibility as well as our security.”