President Obama pledged Thursday the U.S. will "take all necessary steps to protect its people" as he warned North Korea about backing off its recent saber rattling.
Obama's remarks came as he met in the Oval Office with United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon. Obama said the two agreed that "now's the time for North Korea to end the kind of belligerent approach that they've been taking and to try to lower temperatures."
He added, "Nobody wants to see a conflict on the Korean peninsula. But it's important for North Korea, like every other country in the world, to observe the basic rules and norms that are set forth, including a wide variety of U.N. resolutions."
He said the U.S. would "continue to try to work to resolve some of those issues diplomatically," but said he told the Secretary General that the U.S. would "take all necessary steps to protect its people and to meet our obligations under our alliances in the region."Obama said the two had discussed a wide range of issues including Syria, North Korea, the Middle East, climate change and U.N. reform. He said they started with Syria, "where obviously the humanitarian crisis has gotten worse."
Obama said he and Ban and he shared the view that "we are at a critical juncture" and that it's important to bring about a political transition that would respect the rights of all Syrians. In the interim, it is important to try to eliminate some of the carnage that has been taking place directed at civilians and non-combatants.
Obama said they'd strategize about how the United States -- the largest donor to humanitarian assistance in Syria -- can work together with the U.N. to bring about if not a full resolution to the crisis, at least an improvement to the people of Syria.