The White House has launched a review of North Korea policy, reflecting the growing nuclear threat from Pyongyang that Barack Obama told Donald Trump would represent his most pressing national security challenge.
Two people familiar with the review, which the White House has not disclosed, said it was designed to determine what the Trump administration could do differently to address concerns that North Korea could strike the US with a nuclear-armed missile. One person said Michael Flynn, national security adviser, ordered the review on Friday.
The move came just as James Mattis, the US defence secretary, was preparing to travel to South Korea then Japan to discuss ways the allies can tackle the mounting nuclear threat from Pyongyang. Mr Mattis, a former four-star general nicknamed “Mad Dog”, on Thursday began his three-day Asian visit, which is aimed at reassuring Seoul and Tokyo that Mr Trump is committed to the bedrock US alliances in the Asia-Pacific region.