Trump Escalates Threat of Military Action Against North Korea

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In his latest threat against North Korea, President Donald Trump on Friday said the United States had a full military response in place should the country’s leader, Kim Jong-un, “act unwisely.”

Military solutions are now fully in place,locked and loaded,should North Korea act unwisely. Hopefully Kim Jong Un will find another path!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 11, 2017

The hostile message follows Trump’s refusal to back down from his “fire and fury” remarks earlier this week. He suggestd to reporters on Thursday that perhaps his warning was not “tough enough.”

Trump has spent the week exchanging similar threats with North Korea. The country has in turn vowed to use its quickly developing nuclear capabilities on the United States and its allies. Foreign policy experts have widely condemned the president’s provocative rhetoric, with many arguing Trump’s messages exacerbate the already volatile situation on the Korean peninsula.

Meanwhile, North Korea has responded to Trump’s remarks by threatening to surround Guam, where the United States holds major military bases, with an “enveloping fire.”