Tillerson Calls for More Pressure from Thailand on North Korea

On Tuesday, August 8, U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson urged Thailand's leaders to take further actions regarding North Korea during his visit to the country. Meanwhile, Japan's Ministry of Defense reports 'significant progress' in North Korea's weapons program. According to Reuters, Tillerson, during a new phase of his Southeast Asia trip, met with leaders of Thailand. His priority in this Asian trip has been to encourage Southeast Asian countries, including Thailand, to make greater efforts to cut off financial flows to North Korea. In this context, Reuters quoted Tillerson's deputy as saying that the United States believes that North Korean shell companies are operating extensively in Thailand, and the U.S. wants to encourage Thais to shut down these companies. According to Susan Thornton, these shell companies use Bangkok, the capital of Thailand, as one of their regional hubs for transferring liquidity and are constantly changing their names and logos. In response, the Thai Prime Minister, prior to meeting with Tillerson, emphasized only Thailand's support for the new UN Security Council resolution against North Korea. The UN Security Council on Saturday, August 5, approved a draft resolution proposed by the U.S. against North Korea, which tightens the sanctions on the country, including preventing exports worth over a billion dollars for this country. In reaction to these new sanctions, North Korea stated on Monday, August 7, in a harsh tone that UN sanctions would not stop the expansion of its nuclear arsenal. According to AFP, Pyongyang also warned that it would not negotiate as long as it is threatened by the United States. Meanwhile, the British newspaper The Guardian on Tuesday cited a 'defense report from the Japanese government' warning that the threat from North Korea's nuclear weapons has entered a 'new phase.' According to this defense report, Pyongyang's weapons program has made 'significant progress.' The Guardian quoted Japan's Ministry of Defense as saying that now that North Korea 'has conducted two nuclear tests and over 20 ballistic missile tests in the past year, the security threat from this country is entering a new phase.' Less than two weeks ago, North Korea tested a missile that its leader claimed could target 'all of the U.S. mainland.' North Korea announced at that time that the missile launch was successful. The nuclear tests and ballistic missile launches by North Korea are taking place while the UN Security Council has prohibited Pyongyang from carrying out these actions. In this context, North Korea threatened to take 'practical actions' in response to the UN sanctions. Tillerson: The U.S. is ready to negotiate with North Korea if it stops missile tests. North Korea: We will not negotiate as long as we are threatened by the U.S. China has called on North Korea to stop its missile and nuclear tests. Trump welcomed cooperation from Russia and China in passing new sanctions against North Korea. The Security Council unanimously imposed new sanctions against North Korea.