So I think that when it happens in Washington, a lot of these things are all set up already and everybody knows the ropes, but when you’re doing it at a new location, sometimes there are new people that have to be brought into the fold and I think that’s what we’re focused on, making sure that all the local officials know what their roles are and how they can be helpful and that everyone knows sort of what the program is and the President’s expectations for a very successful summit. And I’m sure that our teams down there are going to meet that.
MODERATOR:Let’s take our colleague in New York, please.
QUESTION:Yeah, hi. This is Manik Mehta, syndicated journalist. On North Korea, President Trump recently said that the U.S. will go alone against North Korea if China does not cooperate. And Secretary Tillerson issued a very small statement today saying that the time for talk was over and we need action. Could you amplify that? And what exactly does “action” mean?
MR POTTINGER:Do you want to start with the Secretary’s comment?
MS THORNTON:I think – I mean, we have both answered this question over the last couple of days, but I’ll just reiterate again. I think on Secretary Tillerson’s trip to Northeast Asia you saw him, in his expressions about North Korea and where we are in our policy review, clearly express that patience has basically come to an end. We are looking for an action-focused, results-oriented approach, and we are going to be trying to cooperate with other partners and allies in a global coalition really to try to solve this problem in an urgent way that we haven’t really taken up before.
So I think that’s the sense that you’re getting from Secretary Tillerson’s statement today, his statement last night following the latest provocation out of North Korea – the illegal missile launch. And I think also the sense that we are really going to defend our allies and our interests in the region, our commitment to the defense of South Korea and Japan is ironclad, and that we will do whatever is necessary to ensure that we’re going to maintain security in that region and that we’re going to be very serious about pursuing a solution to the illegal North Korean weapons programs.
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