Analysis | Surprise and silence in South Korea and Japan after Trump threatens to ‘destroy’ North Korea in UN speech
Trump’s overheated language was rare for a US president at the rostrum of the United Nations, but the speech was textbook Trump, dividing the globe into friends and foes
In his maiden speech to the United Nations General Assembly Tuesday, Trump derided Kim as “rocket man” and said the United States would “totally destroy North Korea” if needed to protect its allies.
Those allies, Japan and South Korea, were silent on Trump’s threat to bring war to their neighbourhood, while China and Russia both warned that Trump risked fuelling tensions.
China’s nationalist Global Times newspaper ran a cartoon captioned “Bully pulpit” showing Trump holding a megaphone, shouting “America First,” while the state-owned China Daily newspaper said Trump’s speech was “full of sound and fury”.
The silence from Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was particularly telling because he has been eager to agree with Trump’s every utterance on dealing with North Korea. A spokesman for Abe, Motosada Matano, declined to comment on Trump’s speech.
Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said: “We greatly appreciate President Trump’s approach to changing North Korea’s policy stance, denuclearising the country and calling on the international community, including China and Russia, for their cooperation toward strengthening pressure on North Korea.”
