world, they are most vulnerable to any provocation or act of aggression from the north, and so the u.s. wants to reassure them that president trump and his team would not act without their knowledge, their cooperation, that kind of thing. so being able to deliver that message in person is certainly helpful given the moment in time we're at, but that wasn't the intention of the trip, it was much more broadly about the military and economic relationships for all of the countries on his multi-day -- multi-day and multi-country visit. the timing is helpful in terms of this perspective he can bring, and we'll follow that closely once the trip begins. for mike pence, it maybe is one of his first big moments to be the diplomat on the ground. he's done other international trips since taking office, but this one comes at such a pivotal time. indicate s katy? >> courtney, on this u.s. news