Trump Heads to Asia in Effort to Increase Pressure on North Korea

Donald Trump, the President of the United States, is traveling to five East Asian countries in November to contain North Korea and its missile and nuclear programs. According to international news agencies on Friday, October 7, and citing the White House, Trump's itinerary primarily includes visits to Japan, South Korea, and China, three powerful Asian countries with which he has met multiple times to design a new strategy to pressure Pyongyang. The report states that Donald Trump will also participate in regional economic and security conferences held in Vietnam and the Philippines. The U.S. President's trip to Asia will begin on November 12 and end on November 23. One of the leaders expected to meet with Trump during this trip is Vladimir Putin, the President of Russia, who is announced to be attending the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Vietnam. Trump is also scheduled to have bilateral talks with his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, and South Korean President Moon Jae-in. However, it is unclear if he will have bilateral meetings with the leaders of Vietnam and Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte. Duterte's government has faced severe international criticism for the extrajudicial killings of thousands of drug traffickers in the Philippines. Nevertheless, in an effort to increase pressure on North Korea, Trump had a phone conversation with the Philippine President a few months ago, praising him. The White House statement indicates that Trump's actions during this trip will strengthen international resolve to confront the North Korean threat. The U.S. President recently launched a strong attack on North Korea during his speech at the United Nations General Assembly, warning that if Pyongyang does not back down from its current position, the U.S. will have no choice but to 'totally destroy North Korea.' Following this, North Korea threatened to conduct a hydrogen bomb test. In this context, Trump stated that military options against North Korea are not a priority but would be devastating. He also ordered the cessation of North Korean companies' activities in China. Amano stated that North Korea is now a new global threat.