North Korea launch a 'grave threat' to the 'entire world': Trump, Moon
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“Both leaders underscored the grave threat that North Korea’s latest provocation poses not only to the United States and the Republic of Korea, but to the entire world,” the White House said in an account of a crisis call between Trump and Moon.
Mr Trump also spoke Tuesday with Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, as the United States, Japan and South Korea requested an emergency UN Security Council meeting to address Pyongyang’s launch of what appeared to be an intercontinental ballistic missile.
“The two leaders agreed that the North Korean regime’s provocative actions are undermining its security and further isolating it from the international community,” a White House statement said.
“The leaders reaffirmed their commitment to combat the North Korean threat.”
Mr Trump later tweeted his support for further military funding.
After North Korea missile launch, it’s more important than ever to fund our gov’t military! Dems shouldn’t hold troop funding hostage for amnesty illegal immigration. I ran on stopping illegal immigration and won big. They can’t now threaten a shutdown to get their demands.
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 29, 2017
“After North Korea missile launch, it’s more important than ever to fund our gov’t military! Dems shouldn’t hold troop funding hostage for amnesty illegal immigration. I ran on stopping illegal immigration and won big. They can’t now threaten a shutdown to get their demands,” he Tweeted.
North Korea test fired what appeared to be an intercontinental ballistic missile on Wednesday, in a major challenge to President Trump after he slapped fresh sanctions on Pyongyang and declared it a state sponsor of terrorism.
It was the nuclear-armed North’s first ballistic test in more than two months and an initial assessment by the Pentagon said it was an ICBM that flew about 1,000 kilometers before splashing down within Japan’s maritime Economic Exclusion Zone.
The test prompted a swift response from Mr Trump who warned: “We will take care of it,” while Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe described it a “violent” act that can “never be tolerated.”
North Korea has returned to the list of countries the United States views as state sponsors of terror.
Japan, the United States and South Korea called for a special meeting of the UN Security Council, while US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson stressed that diplomatic options for resolving the North Korean nuclear issue remained “viable and open”
It was the North’s third successful test of an ICBM which has the range to reach the mainland United States, although experts say Pyongyang has yet to master the re-entry technology required to bring a nuclear warhead back through the Earth’s atmosphere.
“The Australian Government condemns in the strongest possible terms North Korea’s continued violation of United Nations Security Council resolutions,” Foreign Minister Julie Bishop told reporters in Canberra on Wednesday.
In September the North conducted its sixth and most powerful nuclear test and staged an intermediate-range missile launch over Japan, before a lull in testing that had raised hopes that multiple sanctions on its nuclear weapons programme were finally having an impact.
The US last week raised pressure on Pyongyang by unveiling new sanctions targeting North Korean shipping.
President Trump also declared North Korea a state sponsor of terrorism, a spot on a US blacklist the country had shed nearly a decade ago.
Mr Trump said that the terror designation and sanctions were part of a series of moves to reinforce his “maximum pressure campaign” against North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un’s regime.
.@POTUS was briefed, while missile was still in the air, on the situation in North Korea.
— Sarah Sanders (@PressSec) November 28, 2017
Japan’s defense ministry says the North Korean missile launched at 0318, splashed down in the EEZ about 50 minutes later, according to NHK. That’s a long flight. As this map shows, the EEZ is a large area. pic.twitter.com/i2V9NEguKe
— Martyn Williams (@martyn_williams) November 28, 2017
But the North remained defiant, vowing to continue building up its nuclear force in the face of repeated US sanctions and threats.
It condemned the US terror listing as a “serious provocation” and warned that sanctions would never succeed.
It also slammed Washington for behaving like an “international judge on terrorism” and said the move was “clearly an absurdity and a mockery to world peace and security”.
China, the North’s sole ally, has pushed for a “dual track approach” to the crisis which would see the United States freeze its military drills in South Korea while North Korea would halt its weapons programs.
Washington has rejected that approach.
This is what commercial ships traveling in seas around Japan receive when North Korea fires off missiles. Like a weather report, for bombs. pic.twitter.com/xJnHuRoir0
— Timothy Aeppel (@TimAeppel) November 28, 2017
In response to Wednesday’s ICBM test, South Korea’s military staged a “precision strike” missile exercise, the South’s Yonhap news agency quoted military officials as saying.
In a statement, the Pentagon said the missile did not pose a danger to North America, any US territories or any ally nations.
“Our commitment to the defense of our allies, including the Republic of Korea and Japan, in the face of these threats, remains ironclad,” the statement read.
“We remain prepared to defend ourselves and our allies from any attack or provocation.”
Drumming up support for a tough stance against North Korea’s nuclear weapons ambitions was the main focus of a marathon Asian tour undertaken by Mr Trump earlier this month.
But the US administration has said it is still open to pursuing dialogue with Pyongyang and Mr Trump has even said he would be willing, in the right circumstances, to sit down with North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un.
Pentagon spokesperson Col. Robert Manning sent out a statement saying the intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) posed no threat to the US or its allies.
“The North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) determined the missile launch from North Korea did not pose a threat to North America, our territories or our allies,” he wrote.
North Korea’s latest missile launch is a “further unacceptable violation” of its international obligations, a spokeswoman for the European Union foreign affairs chief said on Tuesday.
“This launch represents a further grave provocation, and a serious threat to international security,” a spokeswoman for Federica Mogherini said.
Article source: http://smh.com.au/world/facebook-takes-down-data-and-thousands-of-posts-obscuring-reach-of-russian-disinformation-20171013-gz09rl.html
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