Trump turns ire towards China
WILL NOT LET BEIJING ‘DO NOTHING’
US President Donald Trump warned on Saturday that he would not allow China to “do nothing” about North Korea, after the hermit state launched an intercontinental ballistic missile it said could reach the United States.
North Korean leader Kim JongUn boasted of his country’s ability to strike any target in the US after the ICBM test that weapons experts said could even bring New York into range – in a major challenge to Trump.
Under Kim’s leadership, North Korea has accelerated its drive towards a credible nuclear strike capability, in defiance of international condemnation and multiple sets of UN sanctions.
In his critique of Beijing, which came in two tweets, Trump linked trade strains with the Asian giant – marked by a trade deficit of $309 billion last year – to policy on North Korea, after South Korea indicated it was speeding the deployment of a US missile defence system that has infuriated China.
“I am very disappointed in China. Our foolish past leaders have allowed them to make hundreds of billions of dollars a year in trade, yet they do NOTHING for us with North Korea, just talk,” Trump wrote.
“We will no longer allow this to continue. China could easily solve this problem!” Trump, who is at loggerheads with Beijing over how to handle Kim’s regime, has repeatedly urged China to rein in its recalcitrant neighbour, but Beijing insists dialogue is the only practical way forward.
The tweet storm coincided with a bilateral mission led by US strategic bombers on Saturday that flew over the Korean Peninsula in a pointed show of force in response to the latest ICBM tests.
“North Korea remains the most urgent threat to regional stability,” said General Terrence O’Shaughnessy, Pacific Air Forces commander. “If called upon, we are ready to respond with rapid, lethal, and overwhelming force.”
Weapons experts said the altitude and flight time of Friday’s missile suggested it was significantly more powerful than the earlier July 4 test and might be able to reach east coast US cities like New York, depending on the payload size. – AFP