Top Trump aide emphasizes diplomatic and economic approach to North Korean regime
Mikael Thalen
Prison Planet.com
April 26, 2017
“Military preparations” are currently underway as part of the Trump administration’s multifaceted plan towards North Korea, a senior official said Wednesday.
The top Trump aide, who asked not to be named, spoke with reporters while senators met at the White House for what has been described as an “unusual” classified briefing on North Korea’s nuclear ambitions.
“What you see is a really an integrated effort to prioritize diplomatic and informational aspects of national power, but also what you’ll see soon is using the economic dimension of national power as well as the military preparations that are underway,” the official said.
When asked to expand on the administration’s military preparations, the senior official remained tight-lipped, asserting only that a “broad range of options” are being analyzed for the North Korean “threat.”
“I don’t think we’re going to describe those in any detail,” the Trump aide said.
The administration official highlighted further cooperation with U.S. allies Japan and South Korea as well as attempts to push China to further cut off the regime.
- A d v e r t i s e m e n t
Other options, such as multinational sanctions and putting North Korea back on the list of state sponsors of terrorism, have also been introduced as of late.
In a joint-statement following the White House briefing, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, Secretary of Defense James Mattis and Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats asserted North Korea represents “an urgent national security threat and top foreign policy priority.”
“Past efforts have failed to halt North Korea’s unlawful weapons programs and nuclear and ballistic missile tests,” the statement said. “With each provocation, North Korea jeopardizes stability…