On his debut trip as defense secretary, which is also the first foreign visit by any of Donald Trump’s cabinet secretaries, retired Marine General James Mattis arrived in Seoul amid concerns that Pyongyang is allegedly getting ready to test a new ballistic missile.
“ I talked to President Trump and he wanted to make a very clear statement about the priority that we place on this alliance between our two nations ,” said the Pentagon chief, who held an introductory meeting with Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-ahn on Thursday, as quoted by AP.
The new administration “ inherits a very strong, trusted relationship between our two countries and it’s our commitment to make it even stronger especially in the face of the provocations that you face from North Korea ,“ he added.
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The new defense chief said that were it not for Pyongyang’s “ provocative behavior ,“ there would have been no need for the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system in South Korea.
THAAD’s been touted as a means of thwarting North Korea’s ballistic missile threats against South Korea and Japan, but China and Russia say they’re extremely concerned about their security being compromised by the anti-missile system’s powerful radar.
