Seoul – US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said he would not rule out military action in response to North Korean aggressions during a visit to the South on Friday, announcing an end to the his predecessors’ “policy of strategic patience.”
“Let me be clear: The policy of strategic patience has ended,” Tillerson said at a press conference with his South Korean counterpart in Seoul.
He added that the US is “exploring a newn range of diplomatic, security and economic measures. All options are on the table.”
US President Donald Trump’s top diplomat went on to say that any moves by North Korea that threaten troops in the South “will be met with the appropriate response.”
US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson shakes hands with Japanese Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida, left, and South Korean Foreign Minister Yun Byung Se, before a meeting at the G20, February 16, 2017, in Bonn, Germany. (Credit Image: © Glen Johnson/Planet Pix via ZUMA Wire) Photo: Glen Johnson via ZUMA Wire/dpa
The visit comes as part of Tillerson’s three-country Asia trip, which began just over a week after Pyongyang test-launched four ballistic missiles.
Earlier Friday, Tillerson visited the demilitarized zone (DMZ) at the border between North and South Korea. While there, he had lunch with troops, received a briefing and reportedly walked near the demarcation line, according to Yonhap.
Some North Korean soldiers looked on and took photographs, the report said.
Tillerson is also expected to meet South Korea’s acting President and Prime Minister Hwang Kyo Ahn, a week after a court upheld the impeachment of Park Geun Hye.
In addition to threats from the North and its own political turmoil, South Korea faces economic threats from China over the deployment of a US missile defence system.
North Korea’s recent missile tests, part of an exercise that Pyongyang said targeted US military bases in Japan, prompted Washington to deploy the Terminal High-Altitude Area Defence (THAAD) system to South Korea.
The US has said the system is strictly defensive.
Tillerson is expected to arrive in Beijing around noon on Saturday and have talks with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and State Councilor Yang Jiechi.
On Thursday, the secretary underpinned the importance of cooperation with Japan and South Korea as “critical” after meeting with Japanese Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida in Tokyo.
“It is important to recognize that diplomatic and other efforts of the past 20 years to bring North Korea to a point of denuclearization have failed,” said Tillerson, as he called for a “different approach” to dealing with North Korea’s “ever-escalating threat.”
-dpa
