1. SOUNDBITE (English) Mike Pence, US Vice President:
"Thank you all for being here. It is my great honour to represent the President of the United States here in the Demilitarised Zone, and I am very grateful for the leadership of General (Vincent) Brooks and General Lee and the iron-clad and immutable alliance that is represented here by these two strong military leaders. To stand here in this place, to be able to give evidence of the commitment of the people of the United States to our long-term alliance with the people of South Korea is a great honour for me and I bring greetings to our soldiers here and to the soldiers of South Korea from the President of the United States. We commend them for their vigilance here along this historic frontier of freedom and we express the resolve of the people of the United States of America to stand together in the months and years ahead with the people of South Korea to both preserve their freedom and ensure the objective of a denuclearised Korean peninsula. It is an objective not just shared by the United States and the people of South Korea, but by our allies across the globe. We are heartened by the support of allies across the Asia pacific, including China. We will continue to advance this objective on the Korean peninsula and I am here to express the resolve of the people of the United States and the President of the United States, to achieve that objective through peace of all means through negotiations, but all options are on the table. As we continue to stand shoulder to shoulder with the people of South Korea for the denuclearisation of this peninsula and for the long term prosperity and freedom of the people of South Korea. Let me say it is also very humbling for me to be here because my father served here in Korea in the United States' army more than 64 years ago. The general favoured me this morning for the few reflections on my father's service here and it seems altogether fitting that as Vice President I could be here to personally express the timeless bond between the people of South Korea and the people of the United States of America. People across the world should know that the bonds between our people are not simply strategic and military and economic, but they are personal, and they span generations of Americans and South Koreans. And on that foundation, we will see freedom through, we will see the interest of the security and prosperity of the people of South Korea, and in a word, we go together."
US Vice President Mike Pence said on Monday the "era of strategic patience is over" with North Korea.
Pence made the comments during a visit to the Demilitarised Zone dividing North and South Korea.
He said the main objective was to achieve a denuclearised Korean peninsula "through peace of all means through negotiations, but all options are on the table."
His visit, full of Cold War symbolism, and his remarks to reporters come amid increasing tensions and heated rhetoric on the Korean Peninsula.
Pence's visit came after a North Korean missile exploded during launch on Sunday, U.S. and South Korean officials said.
Pyongyang has been trying to showcase its nuclear and missile capabilities around the birth anniversary of the North's late founder and as a U.S. aircraft carrier neared the Korean Peninsula.
