Pence in Japan as NK warns of ‘weekly’ tests
US to work with allies for ‘peaceable solution’
TOKYO: US Vice-President Mike Pence reiterated his country’s commitment to the security of Japan yesterday, as North Korea intensified concerns over its weapons programme with a vow to launch missile tests “every week”.
The North, which is intent on developing a nuclear-tipped ballistic missile capable of reaching the mainland United States, defied international pressure on Sunday with a test that failed immediately after launch.
As fears grow that it may also be preparing for its sixth nuclear weapons test, Vice-Foreign Minister Han Song-Ryol said that its programme would only escalate.
“We’ll be conducting more missile tests on a weekly, monthly and yearly basis,” Mr Han told the BBC in an interview, threatening “all-out war” if the US took any action against it.
Arriving in Tokyo for talks with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Mr Pence hailed the two countries’ longstanding security ties. “The alliance between the United States and Japan is the cornerstone of peace and security in Northeast Asia,” he told Mr Abe.
The Japanese leader called for a peaceful resolution to the North Korea tensions but did not rule out the need for tough measures. “It is a matter of paramount importance for us to seek diplomatic efforts as well as peaceable settlements of the issue,” he said. “At the same time dialogue for the sake of dialogue is valueless and it is necessary for us to exercise pressure.”
Mr Abe and Mr Pence affirmed they will urge China to play a greater role in preventing further provocation by North Korea.
“President Trump is determined to work closely with Japan, with South Korea, with all our allies in the region, and with China, to achieve a peaceable solution and denuclearisation of the Korean Peninsula,” Mr Pence told Mr Abe at the outset of their working lunch.
Mr Abe and Mr Pence affirmed that the threat from North Korea has reached a new level and it is crucial to the peace and stability of the region for Japan and the US to strengthen their alliance, according to a Japanese official who was present.
The official said Mr Pence, whose president recently held a summit and telephone talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping, told Mr Abe the US believes China fully understands the issue and will take action that will lead to further pressure on North Korea.
Mr Pence told Mr Abe that the Japan-US alliance is the “cornerstone” of peace and security in Northeast Asia and the Trump administration places a high value on its commitment to the region through the alliance. “We seek peace always as a country, as does Japan,” Mr Pence said. “But as you know, peace comes through strength.”
The Abe administration has maintained it is pursuing a combination of “dialogue and pressure” in dealing with North Korea.
Mr Abe and Mr Pence affirmed that their countries will continue to share information as allies, but there was no specific mention of the US consulting Japan before taking serious action on North Korea, the official said.
They also did not discuss during the lunch specific actions they might take if North Korea conducts another nuclear test, the official said, while adding that both sides agreed not to make public the contents of a small-group meeting that took place after their lunch.
Mr Abe and Mr Pence agreed to hold another “two-plus-two” ministerial-level security dialogue in the near future, the officials said.
In South Korea on the first leg of an Asian tour, Mr Pence on Monday visited the heavily fortified Demilitarised Zone separating the two Koreas and warned Pyongyang against further provocations, saying “all options are on the table”.
North Korea could react to a potential US strike by targeting South Korea or Japan. Officials in both countries have been ill at ease with the more bellicose language deployed by President Donald Trump’s administration.
Mr Pence pointed to Mr Trump’s recent strikes on a Syrian airbase and an Islamic State complex in Afghanistan as a warning to Pyongyang not to underestimate the administration’s resolve.
Throughout his bare-knuckle election campaign, Mr Trump repeatedly called into question a mutual defence treaty between Japan and the United States, suggesting Tokyo should pay for its own security.
But now Mr Pence will be trying to reassure his jittery hosts that those decadesold security commitments are ironclad, a necessity made more acute after Washington’s refusal to rule out military action against the regime.
Tensions between Pyongyang and Washington have soared in recent weeks as a series of North Korean missile tests have prompted ever-more severe warnings from Mr Trump’s administration. Asked by a reporter what message he had for North Korea’s young leader Kim Jong-un on Monday, Mr Trump replied “Gotta behave”.
North Korea’s deputy ambassador to the UN reiterated on the weekend that the North is ready to respond to any US missile or nuclear strike.
“If the United States dares opt for a military action ... the DPRK is ready to react to any mode of war desired by the Americans,” Kim In-ryong told a news conference, using the abbreviation of the country’s official name.
“We will take the toughest counteraction against the provocateurs.”