US Calls on All Countries to Sever Ties With North Korea Amid Kim's Latest Missile Test
After more than two months of silence, North Korea resumed its missile testing on Wednesday. The attempt, as expected, did not sit well with the United States.
US envoy Nikki Haley said at the UN Security Council that President Donald Trump urged Chinese president Xi Jinping to cut off their country's oil supplies to North Korea's capital, Pyongyang. Washington's reaction stemmed from North Korea's latest ballistic missile test, which their leader Kim Jong-un called "impeccable" and a "breakthrough," the BBC reported.
"We call on all nations to cut off all ties with North Korea," Haley told the other UN envoys from different countries. "That would be a pivotal step in the world's effort to stop this international pariah," said Haley, referring to Trump's call for China to sever its diplomatic and trade ties with North Korea. "If war comes, make no mistake: The North Korean regime will be utterly destroyed," Haley added.
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Meanwhile, Straight Times noted that the UN Security Council meeting was convened upon the request of the U.S., Japan, and South Korea. The three countries aimed to come up with the next steps after three rounds of sanctions applied this year did not stop North Korea from proceeding with their missile testings.
France's UN Ambassador Francois Delattre suggested that the council tightened their sanctions on North Korea. Japanese Ambassador Koro Bessho, on the other hand, said that "the international community has to keep the pressure up," the report added.
Earlier this week, Reuters reported that a source from the Japanese government said that Japan has detected radio signals from North Korea. The signals, the source said, pointed to a missile testing being prepared by the North. The signals, however, did not determine when the missile testing will take place, though Japan's Kyodo news agency said that their government was placed on alert.
With the U.S.' calling the other countries to sever the ties with Pyongyang, it will be interesting to see how Kim Jong-un will respond in the coming days.
