(BIVN) – Federal lawmakers got “An Insider’s Look at the North Korean Regime” Wednesday in Washington, as the House Foreign Affairs Committee held a hearing that featured Mr. Thae Yong-ho, the Former Deputy Chief of Mission at the Embassy of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea in the United Kingdom. Yong-ho is said to be “one of the highest-ranking North Korean officials ever to defect.”

Hawaii Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard sits on the Foreign Affairs Committee and had a chance to talk to the former deputy ambassador to the United Kingdom. It was a rare opportunity “to hear from someone with such unique insight into the most repressive regime in the world – and one that is now threatening us with nuclear war,” the committee said in describing the public hearing.

“Mr. Thae, who defected from North Korea last year, has valuable insights into the Kim regime’s vulnerabilities,” said committee chair Ed Royce (R-CA). “This hearing will be an opportunity to learn how best to apply maximum diplomatic and financial pressure on the Kim regime. We will examine the impact our sanctions are having, as well as our efforts to empower the North Korean people with the truth about Kim Jong Un’s brutal human rights abuses.”

Here is the full video of the hearing courtesy the House Foreign Affairs Committee: