US Defense Secretary, Jim Mattis says, North Korea’s advancing missile and nuclear programs were the most urgent threat to national security. In a written statement to the House Armed Services Committee, he said Pyongyang’s nuclear weapons program is a clear and present danger to all.
He said the regime’s provocative actions, manifestly illegal under international law, have not abated despite United Nations censure and sanctions. Mattis said North Korea’s continued pursuit of nuclear weapons and the means to deliver them has increased in pace and scope. Speaking before the panel, Mattis, warned of the potential losses in the case of conflict with North Korea.
Earlier this month, the U.N. Security Council expanded targeted sanctions against North Korea after its repeated missile tests, adopting the first such resolution agreed by the United States and China since President Donald Trump took office.
