President Donald Trump said the United States would be imposing more sanctions on North Korea. "We will be putting more sanctions on North Korea," Trump told reporters on Thursday, as he was heading into a meeting with Afghan President Ashraf Ghani.
National Security Adviser H.R. McMaster told CNN Thursday morning that Trump will make a sanctions-related announcement about North Korea later today.
McMaster added that the announcement would follow meetings with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and South Korean President Moon Jae-in, key US allies in the region.
In his address before the 72nd session of the UN General Assembly on Tuesday, Trump threatened North Korea with total destruction if it attacks the US or its allies. He went on to refer to Kim Jong-un as "Rocket Man" - a term he had previously tweeted - and accused the North Korean leader of being "on a suicide mission for himself and for his regime."
US not giving up on diplomatic efforts to resolve N. Korea crisis – Ambassador Haley https://t.co/AVFjER9vfl pic.twitter.com/mL6Qa2eesS
— RT America (@RT_America) September 20, 2017
South Korean President Moon told the UN General Assembly on Thursday that sanctions were needed to bring Pyongyang to the negotiating table and force it to give up its nuclear weapons.
Moon stressed that Seoul was not seeking the collapse of North Korea, and that the international community was willing to help Pyongyang if "it stood on the right side of history." Moon cautioned countries to adhere to UN sanctions on North Korea, and to impose tougher steps "in the event of new provocations by Pyongyang."
