Pence visits Korean demilitarized zone
As tension rises in region, dealing with North is top of vice-president’s agenda
TOKYO— U.S. Vice-President Mike Pence made a surprise visit to the demilitarized zone separating North and South Korea on Monday, amid rising tensions in the region over Kim Jong Un’s belligerent actions.
The visit came one day after Kim’s North Korean regime launched its latest ballistic missile, although the missile fired early Sunday morning exploded within seconds.
The missile was launched while Pence was flying to Seoul, and one of his foreign policy advisers said that the United States did not need to respond because the missile failed.
During an Easter ceremony and dinner with American troops and their families in Seoul on Sunday night, Pence did not mention the latest North Korean threats but thanked the troops for their efforts at a tense time in the region.
“I can say with confidence that every American is proud of your service here, and the attention that this part of the world has gotten from people back home is probably no surprise to all of you who are gathered here today,” he said Sunday night.
“This morning’s provocation from the North is just the latest reminder of the risks each one of you face every day in the defence of the freedom of the people of South Korea and the defence of America in this part of the world.”
North Korea will be at the top of Pence’s agenda this week. Later Monday, Pence was set to meet South Korea’s acting president, Hwang Kyo-ahn, who will remain in office until a snap election is held on May 9.
On Tuesday, Pence will travel to Tokyo for meetings with Japanese government officials.
Earlier Sunday, U.S. President Donald Trump asserted that China was working with the U.S. on “the North Korea problem.”
Trump’s national security adviser cited the president’s recent decision to order missile strikes in Syria after a chemical attack blamed on the Assad government as a sign that the president “is clearly comfortable making tough decisions.” But at the same time, H.R. McMaster said, “it’s time for us to undertake all actions we can, short of a military option, to try to resolve this peacefully.”
In a broadcast interview that aired on Sunday, McMaster said the U.S. would rely on its allies as well as on Chinese leadership to resolve the issues with North Korea.
“I mean, North Korea is very vulnerable to pressure from the Chinese,” McMaster said on ABC’s This Week.
The bottom line, McMaster said, is to stop the North’s weapons development and make the Korean Peninsula nuclear-free: “It’s clear that the president is determined not to allow this kind of capability to threaten the United States. And our president will take action that is in the best interest of the American people.”
After a two-month policy review, officials settled on a policy dubbed “maximum pressure and engagement,” U.S. officials said Friday. The administration’s immediate emphasis, the officials said, will be on increasing pressure on Pyongyang with the help of Beijing.
The officials weren’t authorized to speak publicly on the results of the policy review and requested anonymity.
Trump spending Easter weekend at his Florida resort, reinforced his commitment to the armed forces under his control. “Our military is building and is rapidly becoming stronger than ever before,” he tweeted.
On North Korea, the president returned to a theme of placing the onus on China for reining in Pyongyang. Last week, he said he would not declare China a currency manipulator, pulling back from a campaign promise, as he looks for help from Beijing, which is the North’s dominant trade partner.
“Why would I call China a currency manipulator when they are working with us on the North Korean problem? We will see what happens!” Trump tweeted on Sunday.
Along with the deployment of a U.S. aircraft carrier and other vessels into waters off the Korean Peninsula, thousands of U.S. and South Korean troops, tanks and other weaponry were deployed last month in their biggest joint military exercises. That led North Korea to issue routine threats of attacks on its rivals if they show signs of aggression.
The White House foreign policy adviser travelling with Pence told reporters that the type of missile that North Korea tried to fire on Sunday was medium-range, and that it exploded about four to five seconds after it was launched.