US confident it can intercept North Korean missiles

Navy Admiral Locklear

The United States could intercept a ballistic missile launched by North Korea, the top US military commander in the Pacific said Tuesday, as the relationship between the West and the communist government hit its lowest ebb since the end of the Korean War.

Admiral Samuel Locklear, commander of US Pacific Command, told the Senate Armed Services Committee that Pyongyang's pursuit of nuclear weapons and long-range ballistic missiles represented a clear threat to the United States and its allies in the region.

But he said that the US was "ready" if North Korea attempted a strike and that it had the capability to thwart a North Korean missile.