Pence Warns N/Korea, Don’t Test The Strength Of The US Military
US Vice President Mike Pence on Monday warned North Korea not to test the military strength of the United States, saying further missile and nuclear test will not be tolerated.
Pence made the remarks alongside acting South Korean President Hwang Kyo-ahn, at the demilitarised zone (DMZ), during a visit to South Korea, a day after a failed missile test by the North.
The US Vice President further linked recent US military strikes in Syria and Afghanistan with the situation in Korea, saying they showed the “strength and resolve of our new president.”
“We will defeat any attack and we will meet any use of conventional or nuclear weapons with an overwhelming and effective response,” Pence said, adding that when it came to North Korea “all options are on the table.”
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The U.S. Navy this month struck a Syrian airfield with 59 Tomahawk missiles. On Thursday, the U.S. military said it had dropped “the mother of all bombs,” the largest non-nuclear device it has ever unleashed in combat, on a network of caves and tunnels used by Islamic State in eastern Afghanistan.
Pence said the United States would strengthen anti-North Korea defenses by moving ahead with the early deployment of the THAAD missile defense system, while earlier reiterating that the U.S. “era of strategic patience” with Pyongyang was over.
Pence is on the first stop of a four-nation Asia tour intended to show America’s allies, and remind its adversaries, that the administration of President Donald Trump was not turning its back on the increasingly volatile region.
His visit comes amid escalated tensions on the peninsula, with heated rhetoric from both North Korea and the US.
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On Monday, the US and South Korea launched a joint air force military exercise to ensure readiness against North Korea, according to South Korean media.
