Mattis says nuclear threat by North Korea is accelerating, slams ‘outlaw’ behavior

U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis said Saturday that the threat of a nuclear missile attack by North Korea is accelerating.

Mattis, who made his remarks with South Korean Defense Minister Song Young-moo during his visit to Seoul, accused the hermit kingdom of illegal and unnecessary missile and nuclear programs – and vowed to defeat any attack.

“North Korea has accelerated the threat that it poses to its neighbors and the world through its illegal and unnecessary missile and nuclear weapons programs,” Mattis said.

Mattis said North Korea would be vastly overmatched by the firepower and cohesiveness of the decades-old U.S.-South Korean alliance.