Triumphant Trump Claims to Fix Obama's Asia Mess, Touts Progress on N Korea's Nukes
11-16-2017
President Trump was sounding triumphant on his return from Asia Wednesday, claiming he's mended several relationships that broke down during the Obama Administration.
And he says Asian leaders now have a new resolve to confront North Korea over its nuclear weapons program.
"I called on every nation, including China and Russia, to unite in isolating the North Korean regime," Trump said, "...cutting off all ties of trade and commerce, until it stops its dangerous provocation on – and this is the total key to what we're doing – on denuclearization."
The president also says the U.S. and China have agreed that North Korea cannot just freeze its nuclear weapons program to gain concessions, that it must eliminate its arsenal. But today China's foreign ministry seemed to be backtracking from that.
China is North Korea's traditional ally and accounts for about 90 percent of Pyongyang's trade and virtually all its oil.
North Korea has now gone two months without test-firing a missile, the longest stretch this year without a launch.
North Korea has now gone two months without test-firing a missile, the longest stretch this year without a launch.
President Trump was also working in Asia to whittle down America's trade deficit, which sits at $800 billion a year.
He said, "In Asia, our message was clear and well-received. America is here to compete, to do business and to defend our values and our security."
The president claims both China and Japan will be investing more in the United States, and says, "The days of the United States being taken advantage of are over."
