Kumsusan palace, Mausoleum in Pyongyang, North Korea

Esper, who is on an official visit to Japan, made these remarks at the start of a meeting in Tokyo with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, with whom he discussed the escalation of tensions between Beijing and Washington, the US-Japan bilateral alliance and the latest missile tests by North Korea."China continues to destabilize the region. Their military aggression and calculated strategy of predatory economics violates the international rules-based order that we are trying to uphold," Japanese news agency Kyodo quoted Esper as saying.The Pentagon chief once again lashed out at China after the US decided on Monday to designate the Asian country as a currency manipulator, thereby extending the trade conflict between the world's top two economies into the realm of currency and making the possibility of an agreement seem more remote than ever.He also expressed concern over the recent missile tests by North Korea and said that Washington remains committed to the "complete, irreversible and verifiable denuclearization of North Korea", Efe news reported.Esper's visit to Japan and South Korea, where he will travel on Friday, comes after Pyongyang conducted four missile launches in two weeks, tests that North Korean leader Kim Jong-un described as a "warning" to the allied countries.He is also scheduled to meet his Japanese counterpart, Takeshi Iwaya, on Wednesday to discuss bilateral security ties as well as the alliance the two countries have with South Korea at a time when relations between Seoul and Tokyo have fallen to their lowest level in recent decades owing to a historical dispute.The US and Japanese Defence Ministers are also expected to discuss the possibility of Japan joining the US-led initiative to form a naval mission to escort tankers in the Persian Gulf, in the current context of tensions with Iran.( With inputs from IANS )

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North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and Russian President Vladimir Putin exchanged greetings on Thursday to mark the 74th anniversary of Korea's liberation from Japan, Pyongyang's state media reported. ...

North Korea on Sunday said the country's leader Kim Jong-un supervised the test-firing of a "new weapon" in the launch of two projectiles the previous day and expressed "great satisfaction" with the result. ...

US President Donald Trump on Saturday claimed that North Korea leader Kim Jong-un has issued a 'small apology' for recently testing short-range missiles. ...

North Korea once again fired two short-range ballistic missiles into the East Sea on Saturday, South Korea's military said, likely in a show of protest against the ongoing joint military exercises between Seoul and Washington. ...

US President Donald Trump said he expects to meet again with Kim Jong-un after he received "a very beautiful letter" from the North Korean leader. ...

The US is willing to engage diplomatically with North Korea but will continue sanctions on Pyongyang until the regime gives up its nuclear programme, American Defence Secretary Mark Esper said here on Friday. ...

US Secretary of State Michael Pompeo on Wednesday hoped that denuclearisation talks between his country and North Korea will resume in the coming weeks. ...

US Defence Secretary Mark Esper accused China on Wednesday of "pursuing a strategy of military aggression" and "predatory economics" that is destabilizing the Asia-Pacific region. ...