U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis accused North Korea Tuesday of trying to recklessly "provoke something" with its latest missile test, and said the U.S. will work with China to reduce tensions. His language was stronger than in an initial written statement he issued shortly after the launch, in which he simply said he was aware of the failure.
On his weeklong trip, Mattis will reaffirm "key US military alliances, engage with strategic partners in the Middle East and Africa, and discuss cooperative efforts to counter destabilizing activities and defeat extremist terror organizations", the Defense Department has said. Another official, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss an intelligence matter, said later that the missile was a Scud variant that the USA calls a KN-17.
Asked about his visit to Saudi Arabia, Mattis said the desert kingdom is a "pillar of our security framework for the region".
Sunday's test "shows why we are working so closely right now with the Chinese, coming out of the Mar-a-Lago meeting" in Florida between the two nations' leaders earlier this month, Mattis told reporters.
After a spate of Saudi-led coalition bombings that killed civilians in 2016, the Barack Obama administration looked to curb US support for the Saudis in the civil war.
White House confirms Trump congratulated Erdogan on referendum win
And Erdogan's cooperation in limiting the flow of Syrian refugees matters a lot to our European allies. Turkey's foreign ministry dismissed the observers' criticism as lacking objectivity and impartiality.
The U.S.is conducting counterterrorism operations and airstrikes against al-Qaeda militants in Yemen (al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula), while a small number of U.S forces are assisting the Saudi-led coalition fighting Iran-backed Houthis with limited intelligence and refueling support.
The North has warned of a nuclear strike against the United States if provoked. As the Trump administration draws a tougher line with the regime, what options are open to the US, its allies and China?
Americans for Democracy & Human Rights in Bahrain, among others, has criticized what it calls the administration's plan to decouple human rights from weapons sales.
U.S. Defense Secretary James Mattis, is greeted by Saudi Armed Forces Chief of Joint Staff General Abdul Rahman Al Banyan upon his arrival at King Salman Air Base, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, April 18, 2017.
"We are willing to put it back into force", Lavrov said, but only under USA assurances that its sole mission in Syria is the defeat of the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria.
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