U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley said Wednesday that President Trump’s decision to call North Korean leader Kim Jong Un “Rocket Man” has helped the world talk openly about the threat Kim poses.
“The international community actually very much appreciated the blunt, honest approach that the president took on North Korea as well as Iran,” Haley told ABC Wednesday.
“It worked. I was talking to a president of an African country yesterday and he actually cited ‘Rocket Man’ back to me, so I will tell you that, look, this is a way of getting people to talk about him, but every international community now is referring to him as ‘Rocket Man,'” Haley added.
“It worked. … [Using the term “Rocket Man”] is a way of getting people to talk about [Kin Jong-un].” – Ambassador @nikkihaley pic.twitter.com/POZxcJbYXD— Good Morning America (@GMA) September 20, 2017
Trump gave Kim the famous title of an Elton John song in his Tuesday speech before the United Nations General Assembly.
Haley said Trump’s threat to destroy North Korea if it attacks the U.S. was not out of line considering Kim’s posturing and actions. He has fired two missiles over Japan that landed in the Pacific Ocean, and has talked about threatening Guam.
“If you wanna talk about who’s been giving the threats, it’s certainly been the Kim regime,” Haley said. “What we are saying is ‘We have exhausted every diplomatic means and we are going to continue to do that. While he is being irresponsible, we’re gonna be responsible.'”
