North Korea will develop a plan by mid-August to launch four intermediate-range missiles at the US territory of Guam before presenting it to leader Kim Jong Un, who will make a decision on whether to proceed, the North's state media says.
"The Hwasong-12 rockets to be launched by the KPA (Korean People's Army) will cross the sky above Shimane, Hiroshima and Koichi prefectures of Japan," the report said on Thursday, citing General Kim Rak Gyom, commander of the Strategic Force of the KPA.
The North said US President Donald Trump's "fire and fury" comments earlier this week are a "load of nonsense".
"Sound dialogue is not possible with such a guy bereft of reason and only absolute force can work on him," the official KCNA news service quoted General Kim Rak Gyom of the Korean People's Army as saying on Thursday morning.
Related reading
North Korea risks 'destruction of its people': US
Defense Secretary Jim Mattis warned the rogue state that it would be "grossly" outmatched in any conflict with the US, telling Pyongyang to stop considering any action that risked "the destruction of its people".
"The DPRK (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) must choose to stop isolating itself and stand down its pursuit of nuclear weapons," Mattis said in a statement.
"The DPRK should cease any consideration of actions that would lead to the end of its regime and the destruction of its people."
The Pentagon chief's comments came a day after President Donald Trump issued an apocalyptic warning to his North Korean counterpart Kim Jong-Un, telling him Pyongyang faced "fire and fury" over its weapons and ballistic missile programs.
Mattis said the United Nations Security Council now has a "unified" voice after it unanimously approved tough new sanctions against North Korea.
"The United States and our allies have the demonstrated capabilities and unquestionable commitment to defend ourselves from an attack," Mattis said.
He added that US and allied militaries now have "the most precise, rehearsed and robust defensive and offensive capabilities on Earth."
"The DPRK regime's actions will continue to be grossly overmatched by ours and would lose any arms race or conflict it initiates," he said.
Trump's language towards North Korea has become increasingly hard-edged since Pyongyang carried out a pair of successful intercontinental ballistic missile tests (ICBM) in July, which put the US mainland in range for the first time.
Pyongyang's KCNA state news agency reported Wednesday that plans were being drawn up for missile strikes against the tiny US Pacific island territory of Guam.
Mattis's tone was at odds with that of Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, who earlier said he did not believe "there is any imminent threat" to Guam or other US targets and hoped that diplomatic pressure would prevail in the crisis.
"I think Americans should sleep well at night, have no concerns about this particular rhetoric of the last few days," Tillerson said.
Guam terroritory threatened by North Korean officials. Source: SBS
