Secretary Of State Tillerson Says There Is "No Imminent Threat" From North Korea

"Americans should sleep well at night," he said, following an incendiary statement Tuesday from President Trump on North Korea.

Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said he thinks "Americans should sleep well at night, and have no concerns about this particular rhetoric over the last few days," during a surprise visit to Guam Wednesday morning. He added that he does not believe there is "any imminent threat" from North Korea.

Tillerson's comments stand in contrast to President Trump's rhetoric. On Tuesday, Trump promised "fire and fury like the world has never seen," should North Korea continue to issue threats against the US. On Wednesday morning, Trump was retweeting Fox News reports that American fighter jets were ensuring they could "fight tonight" if necessary — and making dubious claims that he had renovated the US nuclear arsenal in the months since he took office.

Seb Gorka, one of Trump's top national security advisers, made comments backing Trump on Wednesday morning. "He is saying don't test America and don't test Donald J. Trump,” Gorka said on Fox and Friends, discussing Trump's tweets. “The message is very clear: don't test this White House, Pyongyang."

He echoed the presidents statements of strength, saying, "We are not just a superpower. We were a superpower. We are now a hyper-power."

Secretary Tillerson said that North Korea had "ratcheted up" its rhetoric in response to the global community expressing its view that the country needs to stand down its nuclear program.

"I think what the president was doing is sending a strong message to North Korea in language that Kim Jong Un will understand," he said. "I think the president wanted to be clear to the North Korean regime that the US has an unconditional ability to defend itself, will defend itself and its allies."

Asked whether he had considered rerouting the stopover in Guam, given that North Korea identified it as a potential target, the secretary said the "North Korean missile capability can point in many directions" and that he did not consider changing course. Tillerson was earlier visiting Malaysia.

"I do not believe that there is any imminent threat, in my own view," he said.

President Trump tweeted twice Wednesday morning, stating that the US nuclear arsenal is "far stronger and more powerful than ever before," and that "hopefully we will never have to use this power."