In Seoul, the presidential Blue House spokesman confirmed that US President Donald Trump and his South Korean counterpart Moon Jae-in agreed to enhance the country’s deterrence against North Korea by boosting its missile capabilities. Pyongyang fired an intermediate-range Hwasong-12 over Japan early on Tuesday, which it said was a mere “curtain-raiser” for the North’s “resolute countermeasures” against ongoing US-South Korean military drills. Trump and Moon spoke on the phone Friday about North Korean’s “continued destabilizing and escalatory behavior,” the White House said in a statement. Tensions on the Korean Peninsula are at their highest point in years after a series of missile tests by Pyongyang. However, Trump said after the latest missile test that negotiations with Pyongyang were “not the answer.” AFPAFP/CC

Source: Manila Times September 02, 2017 02:26 UTC