Donald Trump has said the US is prepared to take action against North Korea if China does not toughen its stance over Kim Jong-Un's nuclear programme.

The President's warning comes days before he is due to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping at his Mar-a-Lago resort in south Florida.

The pair are expected to discuss trade and territorial disputes in the South China Sea as well as aggression from Pyongyang during meetings on Thursday and Friday.

Mr Trump told the Financial Times: "Yes, we will talk about North Korea.

Image: Chinese President Xi Jinping has already met US secretary of state Rex Tillerson

"And China has great influence over North Korea. And China will either decide to help us with North Korea, or they won't.


"And if they do that will be very good for China, and if they don't it won't be good for anyone."

He suggested trade should be the main incentive for China to co-operate, but said the US could "totally" handle North Korea alone if necessary.

Asked to elaborate on his plan, he said: "I'm not going to tell you.

"You know, I am not the United States of the past where we tell you where we are going to hit in the Middle East."

While diplomatic and economic support from China is believed to be crucial to the survival of the Pyongyang regime, Beijing insists it has limited influence.

Image: UN ambassador Nikki Haley warned China 'has to co-operate' over North Korea

During his election campign, Mr Trump was outspoken on China - threatening to raise import taxes and declare China a currency manipulator.

He told the FT he did not want to discuss tariffs with President Xi at the forthcoming meeting, adding: "Perhaps the next time we meet."

In Oval Office, @realDonaldTrump delivers his verdict: "You lost, I won". Full interview coming soon... pic.twitter.com/gwE6RCNq5N — Lionel Barber (@lionelbarber) 2 April 2017

FT editor Lionel Barber, who interviewed Mr Trump in the Oval Office, told Sky News: "He is the master destabiliser.

"The guy looks for leverage and I think this applies to everything. He likes to be the negotiator.

"He likes to stake out a big aggressive position and then come back, and I think you can see that in terms of foreign policy and the big story of course on North Korea."

UN resolutions have failed so far to deter North Korea from conducting nuclear and missile tests.

Last year, the North conducted two nuclear tests and two dozen tests of ballistic missiles.

Mr Trump's UN ambassador Nikki Haley said at the weekend that China "has to co-operate" with the US to tackle North Korean aggression.

Image: Kim Jong-Un with tank crews taking part in a competiton Image: The North Korean leader stands in front of the assembled armoured vehicles Image: The feared premier addresses the troops as military top brass note down his words Image: Tanks lined up at the start of the competition Image: Kim smiles as he watches the action Image: The tanks fire at targets Image: The ever watchful leader watches from a viewing platform above the competition arena Image: Kim shares laughs a joke with his generals during the competition Image: A shell blasts towards one of the targets /

The President appeared to soften his approach to the European Union in the interview - praising the bloc's response to the Brexit vote.

He said: "I think Brexit is very good for the UK, it is going to be very good for UK.

"I would have thought when it happened that more would follow, but I really think the European Union is getting their act together. It could be a very good thing for both."

He added: "If you would have asked me that the day after the election... I would have said, 'Yeah, it will start to come apart'.

"But they have done a very good job and - I am meeting with them very soon - they have done a very good job in bringing it back together."

Mr Trump, who frequently criticised Angela Merkel during the 2016 presidential campaign, insisted he had a "great" meeting with her.

The talks in March included an awkward moment when Mr Trump appeared to decline a handshake with the German chancellor in front of the press.