SEOUL/TOKYO: US President Donald Trump’s speech to the United Nations, where he warned he would “totally destroy” North Korea if threatened, reinforced the need for Pyongyang to realize it must give up its nuclear weapons, South Korea said on Wednesday.
In a hard-edged speech to the United Nations General Assembly on Tuesday, Trump mocked North Korean leader Kim Jong Un as a “rocket man” for his repeated ballistic missile tests.
“We view the speech as portraying a firm and specific stance on the key issues regarding keeping peace and safety that the international community and the United Nations are faced with,” the office of South Korean President Moon Jae-in said in a statement on Wednesday.
“It clearly showed how seriously the United States government views North Korea’s nuclear program as the president spent an unusual amount of time discussing the issue,” the presidential Blue House’s statement said.
Trump’s speech “reaffirmed that North Korea should be made to realize denuclearization is the only way to the future through utmost sanctions and pressure,” it said.
Moon came to power in May on a platform of more engagement with North Korea. Since Pyongyang’s sixth and largest nuclear test earlier on Sept. 3, however, Moon has said the time is not right for dialogue.
He and Trump plan to meet in New York early on Wednesday US time, Moon’s office said.
“GREAT STRENGTH“
Trump’s most direct military threat to attack North Korea was his latest expression of concern about Pyongyang’s repeated weapons tests.
“The United States has great strength and patience, but if it is forced to defend itself or its allies, we will have no choice but to totally destroy North Korea,” Trump told the 193-member world body. “Rocket man is on a suicide mission for himself and his regime.”
US ally Japan, which Pyongyang often threatens to destroy, has taken a consistently hard line on North Korea, pushing for increased sanctions and pressure.
“We greatly appreciate President Trump’s approach to changing North Korea’s policy stance, denuclearising the country and calling on the international community, including China and Russia, for their cooperation toward strengthening pressure on North Korea,” Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga told reporters.
Suga also welcomed Trump’s reference to a Japanese girl who was kidnapped by North Korean agents in 1977.
The plight of abuctees is a key issue for Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who has pledged to rescue them while in office, and an emotive one for the Japanese public.
North Korea admitted in 2002 it had kidnapped 13 Japanese in the 1970s and 1980s to train spies. Five of them returned to Japan but Tokyo suspects that hundreds more may have been taken.
STRICT SANCTIONS
North Korea, which has conducted more than 80 missile tests under third-generation leader Kim, says it needs its weapons to protect itself from US aggression. South Korea and the United States are technically still at war with North Korea after the 1950-53 Korean conflict ended with a truce, not a peace treaty.
US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, interviewed by Fox News on Tuesday, highlighted Washington’s policy of pressuring North Korea through sanctions.
“We have the strictest sanctions ever put in place. We do believe there are early signs of those having an effect,” he said. “Ultimately, though, we’re going to need the assistance of the neighbors in the region.”
The UN Security Council has unanimously imposed nine rounds of sanctions on North Korea since 2006, the latest earlier this month aimed at restricting fuel supplies and cutting off textile exports, a key foreign exchange earner.
The United States has urged China, North Korea’s main ally and trading partner, and Russia to do more to rein in Kim, something Trump appeared to allude to in his speech.
“It is an outrage that some nations would not only trade with such a regime but would arm, supply and financially support a country that imperils the world with nuclear conflict,” Trump told the General Assembly.
China’s Foreign Ministry, asked to respond to Trump’s comments about destroying North Korea if it had to, said UN resolutions were clear the Korean peninsula issue should be resolved peacefully through political and diplomatic means.
The resolutions passed by the UN Security Council on North Korea reflected the “common will and consensus of the international community” to denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, Ministry spokesman Lu Kang told a regular briefing.
South Korea says Trump’s warning to North Korea “firm and specific”
South Korea says Trump’s warning to North Korea “firm and specific”
Lufthansa adds more flights to Asia, Africa as Middle East war reshapes air travel
- Airlines across Europe have been redirecting capacity after suspending services in the Middle East
- Lufthansa said the move also helps meet demand on long-haul routes that Middle Eastern carriers cannot currently serve
LONDON: Lufthansa said on Friday it was shifting capacity from 10 canceled Middle Eastern destinations to routes such as Singapore and Bangkok as it contends with disruption from the US-Israeli war on Iran.
Airlines across Europe, including budget carrier Wizz Air , have been redirecting capacity after suspending services in the Middle East.
Lufthansa said the move also helps meet demand on long-haul routes that Middle Eastern carriers cannot currently serve.
Airline stocks have slumped this week as US and Israeli airstrikes on Iran — and retaliatory strikes by Iran across the Middle East — have disrupted long-haul flights and sent oil prices soaring.
“The war in the Middle East proves once again how exposed air traffic is and how vulnerable it remains,” Lufthansa CEO Carsten Spohr said in a statement. He added the outlook was uncertain, particularly for jet fuel costs.
The schedule changes came as the German group reported better-than-expected 2025 results, saying stricter financial management and fleet renewal had helped contain costs and lift profits. Its shares rose as much as 4 percent, before reversing to trade down 1.2 percent at 1246 GMT.
The company said demand on routes to and from Asia and Africa had risen strongly since the conflict began on Saturday, and it would stick with its focus on expanding long-haul services. Spohr said new flights to Asia would launch in days.
Lufthansa did say how many services it had canceled because of the conflict.
While carriers face costs for rescheduling and rerouting, the biggest impact for those outside the Middle East is expected from surging fuel prices. Brent crude futures have jumped more than 20 percent this week.
Spohr said Lufthansa was well hedged in the short term. The group hedges fuel up to 24 months ahead and was 85 percent hedged as of December 31, according to its annual report.
RESILIENCE
European carriers, including Lufthansa, benefited from slightly lower fuel bills in 2025. Lufthansa’s fuel bill fell 7 percent, helping support earnings as passenger demand stayed firm.
“Last year we were able to significantly increase the Group’s operating profit and achieved the highest revenue in our history. Our results demonstrate the resilience and stability of the Group,” Spohr said.
Lufthansa reported an adjusted operating profit of 2 billion euros ($2.3 billion), compared with 1.9 billion euros forecast in a company-compiled analyst poll and up from 1.6 billion euros in 2024. The group also posted an operating margin of 4.9 percent, up from 4.4 percent a year earlier.
Lufthansa aims to lift operating margins to 8 percent-10 percent between 2028 and 2030 from 4.4 percent in 2024, but strikes by workers, including the most recent on February 12, have made it harder to boost profitability.
Bernstein analyst Alex Irving said ongoing weakness in the passenger airline segment persisted, but that strong performances in Cargo and Lufthansa Technik helped lift profits.
The carrier said the outlook for 2026 was unclear due to geopolitical uncertainty. It projected capacity growth of 4 percent, alongside increased revenue and profit margin.
