WASHINGTON (AP) — The top Republican on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee says he fears that someone in North Korea might try to sell that country’s nuclear materials or nuclear weapons.

Sen. Richard Lugar of Indiana says his worst fear is that something might happen to North Korea’s nuclear material or nuclear weapons and that some in the North might try to sell them to others because of the country’s economic crisis.

Appearing Sunday on CNN’s “State of the Union,” Lugar said the United States must track what happens to this material.

The senator said the Chinese must determine whether to treat North Korea as a province of China. He said China is concerned that North Koreans could start crossing the border and drain Chinese resources.

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