U.S. to Keep Cooperating with Japan, S. Korea over N. Korea

Washington, April 16 (Jiji Press)--The United States plans to continue applying pressure on North Korea in cooperation with Japan and South Korea, following the reclusive country's ballistic missile launch on Sunday, which is believed to have ended in failure, informed sources said. The missile launch attempt came as U.S. Vice President Mike Pence was en route to South Korea on the first leg of his four-nation Asia-Pacific tour. He is slated to move to Japan on Tuesday. The U.S. vice president is expected to reconfirm with South Korean and Japanese leaders the unity among the three countries over issues related to North Korea and explain the policy of U.S. President Donald Trump's administration to take a tough stance against North Korean provocations, the sources said. A White House official accompanying Pence, who arrived in South Korea on Sunday afternoon, told reporters that the latest missile firing by North Korea had been expected and was not surprising. The official said that Trump is preparing a wide range of options against North Korea, including military action. But the official suggested that fresh countermeasures will not be taken for the moment, saying that there is no need to use resources in response to the unsuccessful missile launch. The official added that the United States would have acted otherwise if North Korea had conducted a nuclear test this time. Given that North Korea refrained from carrying out a nuclear test or launching an intercontinental ballistic missile, the U.S. government is expected to watch for the time being whether China, a close ally of North Korea, will be able to come up with effective measures to prevent Pyongyang from taking further provocative actions, informed sources said. U.S. Defense Secretary James Mattis said in a statement: "The president and his military team are aware of North Korea's most recent unsuccessful missile launch. The president has no further comment." Trump earlier said that he expects Chinese President Xi Jinping to work hard for increasing pressure on North Korea. Pence may discuss with South Korean and Japanese leaders steps that should be taken in case China's efforts to persuade North Korea prove unsuccessful, analysts said. END