Trump invites Prayut to White House

01 พฤษภาคม 2560

President Donald Trump Trump spoke to the prime ministers of Thailand and Singapore in separate phone calls about the North Korean threat and invited both of them to Washington, US officials said.

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Trump calls Prayut with invitation to White House

Online reporters and agencies

WASHINGTON – President Donald Trump Trump spoke to the prime ministers of Thailand and Singapore in separate phone calls about the North Korean threat and invited both of them to Washington, US officials said.

The discrete calls took place late Sunday and early Monday Thailand time, according to diplomatic sources.

No date was mentioned or set for the official trip to the White House by Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha, the sources said.

In their phone chat, Trump and Gen Prayut reaffirmed their countries' commitment to one another and underscored their mutual desire for "peace and stability in the the Asia-Pacific region", according to the readout from the White House.

They "expressed a strong shared interest in strengthening the trade and economic ties between the two countries."

Trump also pledged his administration's commitment to "playing an active and leading role in Asia, in close cooperation with partners and allies like Thailand".

There was no immediate comment from Government House about the Trump-Prayut conversation.

The reason for the calls was North Korea. "They discussed ways to maintain diplomatic and economic pressure on North Korea," one US official said of the calls, speaking on condition of anonymity.

"There is nothing right now facing this country and facing the region that is a bigger threat than what is happening in North Korea," White House Chief of Staff Reince Priebus told the US ABC network's Sunday news show, This Week.

"We need cooperation at some level with as many partners in the area as we can get to make sure that we have our ducks in a row."