South Korea said Tuesday that US
president-elect Donald Trump had sent a
"clear warning" to North Korea with a tweet
dismissing Pyongyang's ballistic missile
claims.
" North Korea just stated that it is in the final
stages of developing a nuclear weapon
capable of reaching parts of the US, " Trump
tweeted. " It won't happen!"
Trump's tweet came a day after North Korean
leader Kim Jong-Un appeared to try to pressure
the incoming president by announcing his
country is in the " final stages" of developing an
intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM).
Kim also said his country had significantly
bolstered its nuclear arsenal last year.
Washington has repeatedly vowed that it would
never accept North Korea as a nuclear-armed
nation, but Trump has not previously clearly
stated his policy on the isolated Stalinist state.
" President-elect Trump's message is
significant since it is his first mention of
North Korea's nuclear programme and can be
seen as a clear warning, " South Korean foreign
ministry spokesman Cho June-Hyuck told a
briefing.
Cho said the incoming US administration was
clearly aware of the " gravity and urgency " of
Pyongyang's nuclear threat thanks to South
Korea's "active outreach".
US policy on the North would remain largely
unchanged, he said.
"They are maintaining an unwavering stance
on the need for sanctions on North Korea,"
Cho said.
Trump also blasted Beijing for not doing enough
to help stop North Korea's nuclear programme.
" China has been taking out massive amounts
of money & wealth from the US in totally
one-sided trade, but won't help with North
Korea, " he tweeted. "Nice!"
Following Trump's remarks, a Chinese foreign
ministry spokesman again declared that Beijing
would "stay committed to denuclearisation" on
the peninsula.
"Efforts made by the Chinese side are
obvious for all to see. We hope that relevant
parties would refrain from words and deeds
that will lead to the escalation of tension, "
Geng Shuang told reporters.
In a New Year's speech on Sunday, Kim did not
make a specific reference to the incoming Trump
administration. But he called on Washington to
make a " resolute decision to withdraw its
anachronistic hostile North Korea policy ".
Analysts are divided over how close Pyongyang
is to realising its full nuclear ambitions,
especially as it has never successfully test-fired
an ICBM.
However, it carried out two nuclear tests and
numerous missile launches last year alone in
pursuit of its oft-stated goal -- developing a
weapons system capable of hitting the US
mainland with a nuclear warhead.
Trump's tweet 'clear warning' to North Korea,
says Seoul
Comments