US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson lands in Japan on first Asian trip amid regional tensions
US SECRETARY of State Rex Tillerson has landed in Japan for a tough first tour of Asia amid North Korea’s growing missile threat.
US SECRETARY of State Rex Tillerson faces a tough first trip to Asia this week when the former oil executive will seek to reassure nervous allies facing North Korea’s growing nuclear and missile threat.
Mr Tillerson landed in Japan overnight, before he heads to South Korea and China. In Beijing, he is expected to firm up a US visit by Chinese President Xi Jinping next month to meet President Donald Trump.
The news comes amid revelations Mr Tillerson, the former head of Exxon Mobil, used an alias email address while at the oil company to discuss information related to climate change.
New York attorney general, Eric Schneiderman, said Mr Tillerson used an account named “Wayne Tracker” for at least seven years. Wayne is Mr Tillerson’s middle name.
Mr Schneiderman is investigating whether Exxon misled investors and the public about climate change.
Meanwhile, in Asia, the chances of Mr Tillerson persuading China to do more to curb North Korea’s weapons programs while in Beijing appear scant, given China’s anger at the deployment of a US antimissile system in South Korea last week, and Mr Trump’s repeated threats to impose punitive tariffs on Beijing to correct a large trade imbalance.
Mr Tillerson faces a delicate task in South Korea, which is in political turmoil after former President Park Geun-hye was ousted last week in a corruption scandal.
The prospects of a victory by South Korea’s liberal opposition in elections to be held within two months, has raised questions about the future there of the US-made Terminal High Altitude Area Defence (THAAD) missile defence system, which China objects to as its radar can penetrate China’s territory. Beijing has sought to pressure Seoul to drop THAAD.
In Seoul on Friday, Mr Tillerson will meet the acting president, Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-ahn, and Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se. He is not scheduled to see opposition figures, a State Department official said, raising questions about the durability of any agreements.
China says its influence has limits with neighbour and ally North Korea, which launched four more ballistic missiles last week and is working to develop nuclear-tipped missiles that can reach the United States.
Beijing has proposed that the United States and South Korea halt joint military drills in return for North Korea suspending nuclear and missile activities, an idea Washington and Seoul have rejected.
A Trump administration official said Mr Tillerson’s position on THAAD would be uncompromising, but suggested there might be room for concessions elsewhere to win more Chinese co-operation on North Korea.
“THAAD is non-negotiable,” the official told Reuters. “This is one of those things where Beijing is just going to have to adapt to or live in a perpetual cycle of outrage.”
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