Trump: ‘You can bet’ North Korea nuclear problem gets solved

President Trump said Friday that the threat posed by North Korea’s nuclear ambitions “will be solved.”

“It’s a big problem,” Trump told reporters at a meeting of the Group of Seven world leaders in Sicily. “It’s a world problem and it will be solved at some point. It will be solved, you can bet on that.”

Trump’s remarks came ahead of a meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. 

“We will be discussing many things including, of course, North Korea, which is very much on our minds. We will be discussing terrorism, but I think we will really in particular be focused on the North Korea problem,” Trump said.

The president’s comments come as his administration grapples with how to deal with North Korea’s pursuit of nuclear weapons that could reach the United States. 

{mosads}U.S. officials said Sunday that North Korea launched a medium-range ballistic missile test that landed in the Sea of Japan. 

The Associated Press reported Monday North Korea is ready to begin the mass production of its new missile, which could reach Japan and major military bases. 

Trump said he and the Japanese leader have “a close partnership and collaboration and friendship.” Abe in turn praised Trump on his “very successful” trip to the Middle East and to the NATO summit in Brussels.

Abe was the first foreign leader to visit Trump after his election in November. Abe visited Trump in February, and the two traveled to Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Fla.

“There is one unfortunate thing I have to confess, this time around we will not be able to play golf together,” Abe said, alluding to the Mar-a-Lago trip.

President Trump is wrapping up his first trip abroad as president at the G-7 summit. In addition to meeting with his counterparts in Sicily, Trump traveled to the Middle East, Rome and Brussels.