With North Korea’s drive to field a nuclear-armed missile rapidly emerging as President Donald Trump’s first foreign crisis, his top diplomat is heading to a nervous region. US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, a former oil executive with no government experience, has yet to make an impact in Washington, where he has not even appointed … Read more
Washington is scrambling to develop a new strategy to counter North Korea’s aggressive nuclear weapon and missile programs, but tougher sanctions could provoke a diplomatic clash with China. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson will visit the United States’ frontline allies South Korea and Japan next week before heading on to great power rival China to … Read more
The United States on Wednesday rebuffed China’s appeal for talks with North Korea, saying leader Kim Jong-Un was behaving irrationally and that it was reassessing its approach to dealing with Pyongyang. China, Pyongyang’s main ally, earlier called on North Korea to suspend its nuclear and missile activities in exchange for a halt to the annual … Read more
China on Wednesday called on North Korea to suspend its nuclear and missile activities in exchange for the US and South Korea halting military wargames, to avoid what it called a “head-on collision.” “To defuse the looming crisis on the (Korean) peninsula, China proposes that as a first step, the DPRK may suspend its nuclear … Read more
North Korea warned Saturday that the US will “pay dearly” if it relists Pyongyang as a state sponsor of terrorism following the murder of leader Kim Jong-Un’s half-brother in Malaysia last month. Kim Jong-Nam, 45, was killed on February 13 at a crowded Kuala Lumpur airport in an attack with VX nerve agent, which is … Read more
China´s snap decision to halt North Korean coal imports — a key economic lifeline for Pyongyang — has a broader motive aimed at shaping Donald Trump’s as yet undefined policy towards the North’s rogue nuclear arms programme, experts say. North Korea defied the world a week ago with a missile test and is suspected of … Read more
China on Friday urged a resumption of six-party talks with North Korea on Pyongyang’s nuclear programme, saying a “negative cycle” of nuclear missile tests followed by sanctions must end. “Today, what we see is nuclear test, sanction, nuclear test and then sanction again,” said Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi. “This negative cycle should not continue. … Read more
Michael Lynton is stepping down from his position as CEO of Sony Entertainment, the film, television and music conglomerate, to serve full-time as chairman of the board of social-media power Snapchat. The move, announced Friday in an email by Lynton to Sony staff, will happen in six months. It is unclear who will replace him. … Read more