Rex Tillerson photobombed by North Korean soldier in DMZ (PHOTO)
US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson was the subject of brazen North Korean ‘surveillance’ on Friday, hours before he talked up military intervention as a possible course of action against the nation.
President Donald Trump’s secretary of state is currently on an official visit to South Korea in an effort to address the “nuclear threat” of the neighboring nation ruled by Kim Jong-un.
Secretary Tillerson arrives in #Korea to address #DPRK nuclear threat; reaffirm Administration’s commitment to US-ROK alliance. pic.twitter.com/gvG0JEAb8A
— Department of State (@StateDept) March 17, 2017
Secretary of State Rex Tillerson visited the DMZ to underscore the Administration's commitment to strong U.S.-ROK alliance. pic.twitter.com/NM9CNSfeBT
— Department of State (@StateDept) March 17, 2017
Tillerson’s tour took him to the surreal surroundings of Panmunjom. The area is a border village located in the demilitarized zone (DMZ) of the Korean Peninsula, where on Friday the former Exxon Mobil chief was also bizarrely photobombed by a camera-wielding North Korean soldier.
Rear Window: North Korean soldier takes a photo of Rex Tillerson at the DMZ pic.twitter.com/EHCIR3Fjo6
— Bradd Jaffy (@BraddJaffy) March 17, 2017
An image of the incident has provoked humorous comment online and came just before Tillerson described military action as an “option on the table” for dealing with North Korea threats at a news conference in Seoul.
By the way, Tillerson is far from the first American official to get photobombed by a North Korean solider at the DMZ pic.twitter.com/143nz5A2sx
— Bradd Jaffy (@BraddJaffy) March 17, 2017
@BraddJaffy RT @Apple A reminder that Windows are always more vulnerable to malicious spies
— Vs. (@JFD8) March 17, 2017
@BraddJaffy@KatyTurNBC he has better press access than U.S. reporters
— Joefromjersey (@joetomsey) March 17, 2017
@BraddJaffy@PurlLeslie And, like any vampire, it turned out to be a picture of nothing.
— SallyF❄️ (@sallysrock) March 17, 2017
@BraddJaffy NK: good at killing off Un's relatives and opponents but it seems their spying needs some work 😉
— Lianne (@Prairies) March 17, 2017
@BraddJaffy@PhilipRucker great security oh for sure the State dept's budget needs to be cut LOL
— Al Mac 55 (@Mark_Al_Mac) March 17, 2017
@BraddJaffy I thought this was photoshopped at first but seriously why stand in front of the window?
— Nan (@TracySkidds) March 17, 2017
Panmunjom is manned by military personnel from both South Korea and the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea and has also been the site of numerous peace talks. Former US President Bill Clinton has described the border post as “the scariest place on Earth.”
Following Tillerson’s visit to the DMZ, the secretary of state said that “strategic patience” had ended with regard to North Korea’s weapons development.
“Let me be very clear. The policy of strategic patience has ended. We are exploring a new range of diplomatic, security and economic measures,” Tillerson said.
“If they elevate the threat of their weapons program to a level that we believe requires action, then that option’s on the table.”
