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Rep. John Conyers

US politicians and the Korean-American community continue to criticize US President Donald Trump over his “fire and fury” remarks on Aug. 8.

Sixty-four Democratic members of the House of representatives – including John Conyers, the only member of Congress to have fought in the Korean War – sent a letter to US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson on Aug. 10 expressing “profound concern over the statements made by President Trump that dramatically increased tensions with North Korea and raised the specter of nuclear war.”

“These statements are irresponsible and dangerous, and also senselessly provide a boon to domestic North Korean propaganda which has long sought to portray the United States as a threat to their people,” the letter continued.

The lawmakers urged Tillerson to “do everything in your power to ensure that President Trump and other Administration officials understand the importance of speaking and acting with the utmost caution and restraint on this delicate issue.”

“The Congressmembers indicate their strong support for Tillerson’s recent statements calling for direct talks with North Korea and offering assurances that our country is not their enemy and does not seek war or regime change,” the letter said.

In a previous letter to Trump in May, the lawmakers criticized his response to North Korea’s actions as fickle and urged him to pursue direct dialogue with Pyongyang, while stressing that any preemptive military strike would require congressional approval.

Meanwhile, 21 Korean-American politicians and government officials, including council members and mayors at the state, city, and county levels, sent a letter to Trump the same day asking him not to make the already extreme situation with North Korea any worse.

“While we agree that measures must be taken to reduce or end the tensions on the Korean peninsula, we respectfully urge you [Trump] to reconsider the way you and your Administration are reacting to this situation by avoiding dangerous language that could end up unnecessarily escalating the conflicts even more,” read the letter, which was co-signed by Philadelphia City Councilwoman Helen Gym and Virginia House member Mark Keam.

The officials also reminded Trump that around 1.8 million people of Korean descent live in the US, many of them voters.

Letter sent to Secretary of State Rex Tillerson on Aug. 10 by John Conyers and 63 other Democratic House members

By Yi Yong-in, Washington correspondent

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