SEOUL (Reuters) – U.S. President Joe Biden sent a brief message to North Korean leader Kim Jong-un on Sunday on the last day of his visit to South Korea.
“Hello, that’s all,” the American leader told reporters when asked what message he had for Kim Jong-un.
Joe Biden said he was “not concerned” about possible new North Korean nuclear tests, which would be the first in almost five years.
But his ironic response underscored his administration’s low-key approach to tensions with North Korea. “We are ready to face whatever North Korea does,” said the American president.
The day before, Joe Biden and his South Korean counterpart, Yoon Suk-yeol, agreed to consider strengthening joint military maneuvers between their two countries and the American president reaffirmed the commitment of the United States to defend South Korea in using their nuclear arsenal if necessary.
SECOND STEP
During the second leg of his trip, Joe Biden will meet the leaders of Japan, India and Australia, during a meeting of the quadrilateral dialogue on security (“Quad”), another cornerstone of the strategy of the leader of the United States aimed at countering the growing influence of China.
Yoon Suk-yeol has expressed interest in collaborating more closely with the “Quad”, but an American official has indicated that there is no question of adding Soul to the group.
“It’s natural to think about how you can work with other like-minded democracies, but I think it’s also important to recognize that the current objective is to expand and build on what has already been defined. “, he said.
The Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF) will be launched from Tokyo on Monday. This US President’s program aims to set common standards in areas such as supply chains, clean energy, infrastructure and digital trade between countries in the region.
The US official declined to identify countries that could join IPEF, but said they were pleased with the “very strong interest” from across the region to take part.
(Report Josh Smith and Trevor Hunnicutt; French version Camille Raynaud)