President Donald Trump stressed Tuesday that while military action against North Korea is not the preferred option, the U.S. is ready to take that step if necessary.
North Korean Foreign Minister Ri Yong-ho asserted Monday that Trump has declared war on North Korea, a claim the White House has dismissed as absurd. The senior diplomat also argued that North Korea has the right to use military force against U.S. assets that get too close to the rogue regime, such as U.S. strategic bombers.
Speaking in front of the White House, Trump said that if North Korea forces America’s hand, “it will be devastating, devastating for North Korea” He added the North Korea “should have been handled” years ago, when it “could have been handled much more easily.”
The president said that past presidents left him a mess. “I’ll fix the mess,” he explained to reporters.
“We’ll see what happens with North Korea,” he concluded.
Since Trump took office, the North has launched nearly two dozen missiles, testing a variety of new weapons systems, including an intercontinental ballistic missile that can reach parts, if not most, of the continental U.S. North Korea has also successfully tested a staged thermonuclear weapon, a suspected hydrogen bomb capable of producing an explosive yield potentially in excess of 300 kilotons.
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