WASHINGTON >> It has become something of a ritual for U.S. presidents trying to demonstrate their resolve against North Korea’s ever-escalating aggression.

Beginning with Dwight Eisenhower’s visit to the front lines of wartime Korea, U.S. leaders have traveled to the barbed and mined demilitarized zone dividing the Korean Peninsula, peering across the barren north through binoculars, hearing broadcast propaganda, and reaffirming their commitment to standing with the South.

After leaving the possibility of the visit dangling, the White House announced definitively today that President Donald Trump would not be following in their footsteps.

Trump will instead be visiting Camp Humphreys, a military base about 40 miles south of Seoul, to highlight the U.S.-South Korean partnership and South Korea’s burden-sharing.