He said he chose to go to Japan and South Korea first in order to demonstrate that nothing will weaken the U.S. security promises. He also suggested that South Korea and Japan, which are already within the range of North Korean missiles, might acquire their own nuclear weapons rather than rely on U.S. deterrence. He described Mattis’s visit so early in his tenure as a warning to North Korea. The Trump administration is reviewing the U.S. approach to North Korea, along with other aspects of U.S. defence and foreign policy. North Korea has said it was nearly ready to test-launch a ballistic missile of intercontinental range, meaning it could theoretically threat the United States.

Source: National Post February 03, 2017 14:20 UTC