Rhetoric between Pyongyang and Washington toned down
Kim Jong-un holds off on his threats against Guam. Tillerson says the US is open to talks with North Korea. South Korea, China and Russia continue to urge calm and demand no military action.
Seoul (AsiaNews/Agencies) – After a week of fiery tensions and threats of mutual destruction, Washington and Pyongyang have taken on a more conciliatory note.
North Korean media have reported that the country’s military has presented leader Kim Jong-un with plans to launch missiles into waters near Guam. But the latter said that he would hold off for now, waiting to see what the “crazy Americans” plan to do.
Almost as if reacting to this, US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson yesterday said that the United States remains ready for talks with North Korea, but continues to demand that Pyongyang give up its nuclear programme.
South Korean President Moon Jae-in has also waded into the controversy to reduce tensions between Donald Trump and Kim Jong-un, two unpredictable leaders.
The South Korean leader urged the US not to launch an attack on the Korean peninsula without its consent, saying "no-one may decide to take military action without the consent" of the South.
Speaking about the crisis, Foreign Minister Wang Yi said in a phone conversation Tuesday with his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov that the two countries should permit no one to “stir up an incident on their doorstep.”
The ministry quoted Lavrov as saying tensions could rise again with the US and South Korea set to start large military exercises on 21 August. He said a resolution of the dispute through military force was “completely unacceptable.”
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