NEW YORK (CBSNews) — President Trump tweeted Saturday (July 29) night that he’s “disappointed” in China, and that country does “NOTHING for us” when it comes to North Korea.
“I am very disappointed in China. Our foolish past leaders have allowed them to make hundreds of billions of dollars a year in trade, yet… they do NOTHING for us with North Korea, just talk,” Mr. Trump tweeted
“We will no longer allow this to continue,” he added. “China could easily solve this problem!”
The tweets marked the latest case of Mr. Trump urging Chinese President Xi Jinping to do more regarding North Korea, which on Friday tested an intercontinental ballistic missile.
When asked about his relationship with Xi at a press conference with French President Emannuel Macro earlier this month, Mr. Trump called Xi “a friend,” but added, “we asked him for some assistance with respect to North Korea, probably he could do a little bit more but we’ll find out.”
China has said that it shouldn’t be held responsible for solving the nuclear standoff with North Korea, and that it doesn’t hold the key to resolving the issue.
The intercontinental ballistic missile North Korea tested Friday flew longer and higher than the first one the country tested, according to its wary neighbors, leading analysts to conclude that a wide swath of the U.S. including Los Angeles and Chicago is now within range of Pyongyang’s weapons.
Japanese government spokesman Yoshihide Suga has said that the missile flew for about 45 minutes — about five minutes longer than the ICBM that was test-fired on July 4.
Following the launch, the U.S. conducted a missile defense test Sunday, using a Terminal High Altitutde Area Defense (THAAD) anti-missile system in Alaska. The U.S. Air Force launched a medium-range ballistic missile over the Pacific Ocean, and the THAAD system — in Kodiak, Alaska — “detected, tracked and intercepted the target,” the U.S. Missile Defense Agency said in a statement Sunday.
The U.S. is hoping to arrange an emergency meeting of the U.N. Security Council early this week in response to North Korea’s test, according to U.N. diplomats familiar with ongoing negotiations.
