In a joint news conference Monday with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, President Trump expressed a desire to arm Japan against North Korean threats, The Associated Press reports. Trump apparently said that once Abe "completes the purchase of lots of additional military equipment from the United States," he "will easily shoot [North Korean missiles] out of the sky."
Although Japan's pacifist constitution does not allow its military to shoot down missiles unless they pose a direct threat to the country, Abe announced a plan earlier this year to revise the country's self-defense clause through a constitutional amendment in 2020. On Saturday, The Japan Times reported that Trump apparently had told leaders of southeast Asian countries that he did not understand why "a country of samurai warriors" like Japan did not shoot down North Korean missiles that flew over the country earlier this year.
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