Bishop in high level talks on Korean menace

FOREIGN Minister Julie Bishop will discuss how to deal with North Korean leader King Jong-un’s nuclear regime when she meets with US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and Defence Secretary James Mattis.

Mr Tillerson and General Mattis are in Australia for the annual AUSMIN foreign affairs and security talks in Sydney today.

Political researcher James Cahill told News Corp that Mr Tillerson and General Mattis would expect Australia to “discreetly lobby the Chinese” for their assistance in dealing with any potential threat from North Korea.

“In any plan of action involving force, I would think the US would expect at least a modest contribution from Australia’s Navy or Air Force,” Mr Cahill said.

“This would be a very tough call for any Prime Minister to make, especially given President Trump’s unpopularity in Australia.”

On Friday, Ms Bishop placed another five individuals associated with the North Korean regime’s missile and weapons of mass destruction programs under travel bans and financial sanctions.

Three of the officials live in China, one lives in Russia and another lives in Vietnam.

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull said Australia looked to Beijing to “bring Pyongyang to its senses so that it ceases threatening the peace of the region with its reckless conduct”.

Before becoming America’s 69th secretary of state, Mr Tillerson was the chief executive of the world’s largest publicly traded international oil and gas company, ExxonMobil.