The exchange provided the latest example of Gary Johnson stumbling on foreign policy. | Getty Gary Johnson won't name leader of North Korea

Libertarian presidential candidate Gary Johnson was pressed to name the leader of North Korea as a way of showing his foreign policy chops.

But instead of simply mentioning Kim Jong Un, Johnson declined.


This exchange came in an interview Johnson did with The New York Times on Wednesday. He was asked if he knew who the leader of North Korea is.

"I do," Johnson said going on to say "you want me to name" the country's leader and then saying "really."

Johnson didn't name the leader though.

It's the latest example of Johnson stumbling on a foreign policy question. In early September, Johnson was asked what his policy solution was to dealing with Aleppo, the city at the center of Syria's civil war and refugee crisis Johnson responded: "What is Aleppo?"

More recently, Johnson failed to offer a name of one foreign policy leader he admires during an interview on MSNBC.

These foreign policy answers have raised serious questions about Johnson's knowledge of basic international facts. The Libertarian nominee though has tried to wave those questions off. In an interview with MSNBC's Andrea Mitchell on Tuesday, the former New Mexico governor argued that a deep foreign policy expertise is a pathway to starting wars.

"You know what? The fact that somebody can dot the I’s and cross the T's on a foreign leader’s geographic location then allows them to put our military in harm’s way," Johnson said.

