Shortly after the news that later on Sunday, president Trump would hold a phone call with China president Xi and Japan's PM Abe, the White House said in an advance schedule that on April 26 it will hold a briefing for senators with its “four principals” on North Korea "as the administration considers its options for dealing with saber-rattling from Pyongyang" according to Bloomberg. Among those present will be Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, Defense Secretary Jim Mattis, Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats and Joseph Dunford, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
While it is unclear if today's arrest of a US citizen - the third such detention by the North Korean government - will be a key topic, a State Department official said in a brief statement that “we are aware of reports that a U.S. citizen was detained in North Korea," and added that "in cases where U.S. citizens are reported to be detained in North Korea, we work with the Swedish Embassy, which serves as the United States’ Protecting Power in North Korea. Due to privacy considerations, we have no further comment."
In the latest sabre-rattling from Pyongyang, North Korea threatened that it was ready to sink a U.S. aircraft carrier to show its military strength, Reuters reported, citing the country's state-run Rodung Sinmun. The USS Carl Vinson is heading to the Western Pacific to conduct drills with two Japanese destroyers amid heightened tensions over the North’s missile tests.
The warning came as Mike Pence reiterated the popular line that all options are "on the table" during a visit to Sydney this weekend
Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly said on Sunday’s “Face the Nation” on CBS that while North Korea poses mostly a cyber threat to the U.S. today, that could change. “The instant they get a missile that can reach the United States, and they have a weaponized atomic device, nuclear device on it, we’re at grave risk as a nation,” he said.
As a reminder, April 26 is the day after the USS Carl Vinson is expected to real the Korean Peninsula, and one day after China has speculated NK could conduct another nuclear test to celebrate an important army holiday.
Meanwhile, in its latest cover, Germany's Spiegel magazine has put Trump and Kim on the same side of the boat, or in this case bomb.