In an interview with The American Prospect published on Wednesday, Bannon said of North Korea’s nuclear threats: “There is no military solution, forget it. “I think we have been quite clear as to what the policy and the posture towards North Korea is,” Tillerson told reporters. Military analysts warn that a US pre-emptive strike against the North would be met with immediate retaliation against South Korea. The top US military officer said the Ulchi-Freedom Guardian drills, involving about 75,000 American and South Korean troops, would begin as planned on Monday. “As long as the threat in North Korea exists, we need to maintain a high state of readiness to respond to that threat.”The US has dismissed a “dual suspension” proposal by China that would involve cancelling the drills in exchange for North Korea halting its weapons programmes.

Source: The Guardian August 18, 2017 04:52 UTC