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US "In A Race" To Address North Korea Threat

The White House's national security adviser has said that the US is "in a race" to address the threat posed by North Korea.

Lieutenant General H. R. McMaster told a defence forum that although the threat of war is increasing daily, armed conflict is not the only solution.

He made the comments just three days after North Korea carried out its latest missile test.

The missile flew higher than any others previously tested, before falling into Japanese waters.

Pyongyang has continued to carry out missile tests despite sanctions.

The BBC reports that the Pentagon was also scouting sites on the west coast of America to deploy extra defences.

Lieutenant General McMaster said in reference to North Korean leader Kim Jong-un:

"There are ways to address this problem short of armed conflict, but it is a race because he's getting closer and closer, and there's not much time left."

North Korea has also said that leader Kim Jong Un has thanked workers at a factory that built the tyres for a huge vehicle used to transport a new intercontinental ballistic missile that was test-launched this week.

The North's official Korean Central News Agency says Mr Kim in September tasked the Amnokgang Tire Factory to produce the large-size tyres for the nine-axle missile trucks during preparations for the "great event in November".

South Korea's military says the Hwasong-15 ICMB, launched on Wednesday, is potentially capable of striking targets as far as 13,000 kilometres (8,100 miles), which would put Washington within reach.

The KCNA says Mr Kim complimented workers and called for further efforts to raise production to satisfy the "the daily-increasing needs in developing the country's economy and beefing up national defence capabilities".