TOKYO (Kyodo) -- U.S. President Donald Trump told Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in telephone talks Thursday that the United States considers all options are on the table in dealing with North Korea, according to the Japanese leader.
Trump "made clear that the United States will continue to strengthen its ability to deter and defend itself and its allies with the full range of its military capabilities," the White House later said in a statement.
Ahead of Trump's meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Florida, he and Abe agreed that China has an important role to play in dissuading North Korea from pursuing nuclear weapons and missile programs in defiance of U.N. Security Council resolutions, a senior Japanese official said after the talks.
"(We) agreed that yesterday's missile launch by North Korea was a dangerous provocative act and a grave threat to (Japan's) security," Abe told reporters after the phone call, referring to the latest test-firing of a ballistic missile Wednesday.
Abe also told Trump that Japan is paying attention to how China handles the issue of North Korea.
"(Japan) will continue to coordinate with the United States and the rest of the international community in strengthening our response to North Korea," Abe said.
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