DefenceTalkPresident Donald Trump issued an apocalyptic warning to North Korea on Tuesday, saying it faces “fire and fury” over its missile program, after US media reported Pyongyang has successfully miniaturized a nuclear warhead. North Korea raised the stakes just hours later, saying it was considering missile strikes near US strategic military installations on the Pacific […]https://www.defencetalk.com/trump-warns-north-korea-of-fire-and-fury-70260/

DefenceTalkUS President Donald Trump said Friday that the United States remained committed to NATO’s mutual defense pledge, after he failed to endorse it in a speech in Brussels last month. Amid worries by Washington’s European partners that the US leader had not fully bought into the Atlantic alliance, Trump told reporters: “I’m committing the United […]https://www.defencetalk.com/trump-says-us-committed-to-natos-mutual-defense-pledge-70162/

DefenceTalkThe transatlantic diplomatic rift widened on Tuesday as US President Donald Trump responded to criticism from Chancellor Angela Merkel with a new attack on German trade tactics and defense spending. Trump’s spokesman Sean Spicer insisted that the leaders “get on very well” but — as is often the case — his warm words from the […]https://www.defencetalk.com/new-trump-attack-on-germany-widens-transatlantic-rift-70105/

DefenceTalkChina’s UN ambassador said Tuesday that there was “no reason” to refuse dialogue with North Korea despite a series of ballistic missile tests that have been strongly condemned by the Security Council. “There is no reason why dialogue is not taking place in the current situation,” Ambassador Liu Jieyi told reporters after a council meeting, […]https://www.defencetalk.com/chinas-un-envoy-says-no-reason-not-to-talk-with-north-korea-70021/

DefenceTalkPrime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Washington has added tens of millions of dollars in extra defence aid for Israel, a day after US President Donald Trump wound up a visit. He did not say over what timeframe the money would be disbursed. The addition comes on the heels of a weekend announcement of a massive […]https://www.defencetalk.com/us-grants-israel-extra-defence-aid-netanyahu-70018/

DefenceTalkHoping for the best, fearing the worst: EU and NATO leaders are braced for their first meeting with US President Donald Trump on their home turf on Thursday. The trepidation in Brussels, a city Trump once dubbed a dangerous “hellhole,” is palpable as he has up-ended one long-held certainty about US ties after another. On […]https://www.defencetalk.com/nato-and-eu-wonder-which-trump-will-turn-up-70010/

DefenceTalkUS President Donald Trump on Monday said he would not rule out meeting North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un, under the right conditions, as Pyongyang threatens to carry out a sixth nuclear test. Tensions on the Korean peninsula have been running high for weeks, with signs the North might be preparing a long-range missile launch or […]https://www.defencetalk.com/trump-would-be-honored-to-meet-north-koreas-kim-if-conditions-right-69888/

DefenceTalkUS President Donald Trump on Friday said he wants South Korea to pay $1 billion for a missile shield being deployed here, and called for a renegotiation of a bilateral free trade pact. Amid intense debate at home and diplomatic friction with China, key components of the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense system were brought […]https://www.defencetalk.com/south-korea-should-pay-1b-for-thaad-trump-69856/

DefenceTalkThe Trump administration on Wednesday tried to clear the waters after it gave confusing messages concerning the whereabouts of a US supercarrier that supposedly was steaming toward North Korea last week. Amid soaring tensions ahead of North Korea’s apparent ramping up for a sixth nuclear test, the US Navy on April 8 said it was […]https://www.defencetalk.com/us-tries-to-clear-waters-after-n-korea-armada-confusion-69786/

DefenceTalkThe United States will counter any North Korean attack with an “overwhelming and effective” response, Vice President Mike Pence vowed Wednesday, as he stood on the deck of a massive American aircraft carrier docked in Japan. Donald Trump’s deputy is in the region to reassure allies fretting over Pyongyang’s quickening missile program, and its apparent […]https://www.defencetalk.com/pence-vows-overwhelming-response-to-north-korea-69765/