WASHINGTON, (Sputnik) — The Trump administration still considers a military solution with respect to North Korea, but prefers a diplomatic one, National Security Adviser H.R. McMaster said during a White House press briefing on Friday.
"There is a military option [on North Korea]. Now, it is not what we prefer to do," McMaster stated.
McMaster underlined the importance of enforcing economic sanctions against North Korea which have been supported by the UN Security Council members.
The United States will continue to call on all countries to do everything possible to address the issue, McMaster added. He stressed there is now consensus among all key nations that denuclearization of North Korea is one of the world's top priorities.
The statement comes after North Korea fired an intermediate-range ballistic missile in the early hours of Friday in violation of UN Security Council resolutions that bar it from researching ballistic missile technology. The missile flew over northern Japan before splashing into the Pacific, according to the US Department of Defense.
Earlier, US President Donald Trump has repeatedly said that he doesn't exclude a "military solution" to the North Korean problem, however, later he scaled down such rhetoric, stating it would not be the "first" option.
