US attack on Syria could send North Korea clear message

April 7, 2017

Fox News:

President Trump’s unexpected decision to launch 59 Tomahawk missiles at a Syrian airfield early Friday is a clear message to North Korea that the White House is willing to act militarily when its security is compromised, experts say.

Trump’s actions on Syria could signal to Pyongyang that the new president isn’t afraid of unilateral military steps, even if key nations like China are standing in the way.

Trump made it a point to address the media about the Syria strike at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida just moments after dining with his Chinese counterpart President Xi Jinping.

“This is Trump saying, ‘No, I am a man of my words,’” Reva Goujon, the vice president of Stratfor, told CNBC. “’When I make a threat, I will follow through.’ That’s certainly something the Chinese and North Koreans will be thinking about.”

North Korea has been testing Trump’s resolve with multiple missile tests from Pyongyang. A senior U.S. official told reporters on Tuesday that the “clock has run out” on Pyongyang. Less than 24 hours later, North Korea fired a missile into the Sea of Japan, South Korea’s military said.

The crisis in North Korea was a top priority for Trump in the meetings with Xi. Trump told reporters that he thinks China will “want to be stepping up” in trying to deter North Korea’s nuclear ambitions…

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