The US Secretary of State has said Donald Trump has instructed him to continue diplomatic efforts to calm rising tensions with North Korea, directly contradicting the President’s own words.
Speaking on CNN’s “State of the Union,” Tillerson downplayed messages the President had previously posted on Twitter earlier this month.
He “has made it clear to me to continue my diplomatic efforts,” Tillerson said, adding “those diplomatic efforts will continue until the first bomb drops”.
Trump has been bombastic when tweeting about North Korea and its leader, Kim Jong-Un, even threatening their destruction.
The relationship between Trump and Tillerson has been strained in recent days amidst reports the Secretary of State called his boss a “moron”.
When asked about it on Sunday, he still refused to outright deny the allegation.
Trump has recently escalated a number of international situations - most recently the British, French and German governments have urged him to “consider the implications” to international security after he announced that he will not certify the Iran nuclear agreement.
The major reversal of US policy saw Trump call Iran a “fanatical regime” as he detailed a more confrontational approach to the Middle Eastern country over its nuclear and ballistic missile programs and its support for extremist groups.
Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said that Tehran was committed to the deal and accused Trump of making baseless accusations.