‘BEGGING FOR WAR’
U.S. on N. Korean leader
BEIJING • North Korean is “begging for war,” the United States said Monday, as it called for the strongest possible sanctions against the rogue state following an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council.
Nikki Haley, the United States ambassador to the UN, said “enough is enough” following a sixth nuclear test by Pyongyang, and described calls by China and Russia for the U.S. to tone down its rhetoric as “insulting.”
“When a rogue regime has a nuclear weapon, and an Intercontinental Ballistic Missile pointed at you, you do not take steps to lower your guard,” she said.
On Monday Pyongyang was reported to be preparing for another ICBM test, to follow Sunday’s nuclear test — a move that would be deeply provocative, and emphasize Haley’s point that 24 years of diplomacy have failed.
The United Kingdom and France joined calls for further sanctions against North Korea, but the UNSC’s two other permanent members, China and Russia, both warned against taking hasty measures.
Russian President Vladimir Putin called his South Korean counterpart, Moon Jae-in, Monday with both men condemning the test. Sergei Ryabkov, the Russian deputy foreign minister, said that any “clumsy steps” could make the situation worse, and a political resolution was needed. “Those who are stronger and smarter should show restraint,” he said. “Any clumsy step could lead to an explosion.”
China, North Korea’s protector, echoed Russia in condemning the test, but urged the North and South to focus on working toward a peaceful resolution of the conflict that has left the Korean Peninsula divided since the 1950s. Describing the situation as a “vicious circle,” Liu Jieyi, China’s ambassador to the UN, said: “China will never allow chaos and war on the peninsula.”
Also on Monday, U.S. President Donald Trump spoke with South Korean President Moon Jae-in and agreed that Sunday’s underground nuclear test by North Korea was an unprecedented provocation. The two leaders also agreed to remove the limit on the payload of South Korean missiles.
But Trump has boxed himself into an uncomfortable situation with South Korea, having lashed out at Seoul for being naive with their suggestions of diplomacy, and seething at the trade deficit between the two countries.
Angela Merkel and Trump spoke by phone after which the German government said that Merkel had agreed with the need for stronger sanctions. Switzerland offered to be a mediator between North Korea and its increasingly antagonistic partners.
South Korea responded to North Korea’s nuclear test Monday with live-fire drills off its eastern coast, which were meant to simulate an attack on the North’s main test site.
Their defence minister, Song Young-moo, said he believes the North has successfully miniaturized a nuclear weapon to fit on to a missile.
North Korea said that its enemies are “hell-bent on escalating confrontation,” as it launched a scathing attack on the “warmongers” in Seoul.
Washington and Seoul say the manoeuvres are defensive, but Pyongyang views them as a rehearsal for invasion. The North recently requested a Security Council meeting about the war games.
The U.S. says there is no comparison between its openly conducted, internationally monitored military drills and North Korea’s weapons programs, which the international community has banned.
The council aimed to take a big bite out of the North Korean economy earlier this month by banning the North from exporting coal, iron, lead and seafood products