MIAMI – Sen. Marco Rubio, a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, defended President Donald Trump's threats against North Korea's Kim Jong Un.
Trump said Friday that if Kim continues to threaten Guam or any other U.S. territory or allies, "He will truly regret it and he will regret it fast."
Trump's statement followed a tweet warning the U.S. military was "locked and loaded," a vow to deliver "fire and fury" in response to an attack, and new sanctions announced last week.
"It is in many ways the most difficult geopolitical national security challenge the nationa has faced since 911," Rubio said.
Although the war rhetoric continues to alarm local politicians and world leaders alike, Rubio said he supports the president's actions. He did say his style would have been different had he been elected president.
"My style would be different. I imagine anyone's style would be different. The president is clearly unorthodox," Rubio said during an interview for Local 10 News' This Week in South Florida.
Rubio expressed his support of Trump in a series of tweets Thursday morning. Trump's critics' "act as if North Korea would act differently if he used nicer words," Rubio tweeted.
Despite tensions and talk of war, life on the streets of the North Korean capital remains calm. There are no air raid drills or cars in camouflage netting as was the case during previous crises.
North Koreans have lived for decades with the state media message that war is imminent, the U.S. is to blame and their country is ready to defend itself. State-run media ensure that the population gets the North Korean side of the story, but don’t convey any sense of international concern about the situation.
The Ulchi-Freedom Guardian, the annual U.S.-South Korea military exercise is expected to run Aug. 21-31 and involve tens of thousands of American and South Korean troops on the ground and in the sea and air.
"There is no good options here," Rubio said. "There is not an easy solution to this problem."
The Associated Press' Eric Talmadge contributed to this report from Seoul, South Korea.