As North Korea continues to remain defiant in the face of pressure from the United States and economic sanctions imposed on it, Donald Trump recently met with British Prime Minister Theresa May. The White House said that during the meeting, Trump urged the United Kingdom to increase pressure on Pyongyang to ditch their nuclear weapons program.
Trump threatened military action on North Korea
Trump and May held talks on the sidelines of the UK Premier's visit to the UN in New York. May described efforts by North Korea to amass nuclear weapons as, "outrageous proliferation".
She called on world powers to toughen their approach to President Kim Jong-un's actions. The meeting took place after Trump's inaugural speech to the UN general assembly in New York. During his speech to the UN General Assembly, Trump said that Kim Jong-un is a "rocket man" who is on a suicide mission. During a meeting with Afghanistan President Ashraf Ghani on Thursday, Trump also threatened to destroy North Korea if it continues with the manufacture and testing of nuclear missiles. According to The Business Insider, he also revealed plans to slap fresh sanctions on Pyongyang. The Independent nted that the proposed sanctions will not, however, target the North's oil supplies.
May lambasted Trump for his approach to climate change
The meeting between May and Trump took place shortly after her speech to the UN General Assembly, where she thinly rebuked the US leader for his decision to pull out of the Paris Climate Accord. A White House spokesperson said that the two leaders discussed ways to deal with Iran's destructive influence in Iraq and war-torn Syria.
The two also discussed the nuclear agreement with Iran. According to the White House, Trump and May exchanged notes on how to improve their joint efforts on counter-terrorism, and the use of the internet by terror groups. The British Prime Minister also briefed her US counterpart on the ongoing Brexit talks. The two politicians agreed that North Korea is conducting their missile tests against accepted international standards.
They also concurred that the international community, including China - North Korea's neighbor and supporter - needs to join efforts to put pressure on Pyongyang.
After Trump's threat to destroy North Korea during his speech to the UN in New York, the pariah state's foreign minister compared the US leader to a "barking dog." China, however, warned that the political temperature in the Korean Peninsula is rising. According to The Independent, Wang Yi, China's Foreign Minister, said that the situation should not be allowed to worsen. He called on all the parties invested in the issue not to let it spin out of control.
