Mattis struck an even tougher tone on North Korea in an interview with reporters traveling with him to Saudi Arabia. It would also demand an immediate end to the North's nuclear and missile tests, threaten to take "further significant measures" - United Nations code for new sanctions - and state that North Korea's illegal activities "are greatly increasing tension in the region and beyond".
"Now that we possess mighty nuclear power to protect ourselves from USA nuclear threat, we will respond without the slightest hesitation to full-out war with full-out war and to nuclear war with our style of nuclear strike, and we will emerge victor in the final battle with the United States", the North's Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
US President Donald Trump has been pressing China to rein in North Korea, suggesting that doing so could ease US-China relations over trade and other issues.
Its aim is to be able to put a nuclear warhead on an intercontinental ballistic missile that can reach targets around the world, including the US.
The United States and South Korea are technically still at war with North Korea because their 1950-53 conflict ended in a truce, not a peace treaty.
China supplies about 90 percent of North Korea's energy and sold it more than $100 million in steel a year ago and fears that cutting off such vital exports could destabilise the regime.
According to news agency Reuters, The Rodong Sinmun, the official newspaper of the North's ruling Workers' Party, has threatened that Pyongyang's super-mighty pre-emptive strike will wipe out the United States mainland and reduce them to ashes. It test-fired a missile on Sunday that exploded within seconds of launch, following a grand military parade on Saturday.
The North will celebrate the 85th anniversary of the foundation of its Korean People's Army on Tuesday and has marked important events in the past by launching missiles or conducting nuclear tests.
USA commander: Anti-missile system in South Korea operational in 'coming days'
President Donald Trump has signalled willingness to use force, if needed, should diplomatic efforts fail to constrain Pyongyang . Security Council. "We'll continue to work very closely among the three of us together as well as with our worldwide partners".
The U.S. Defense Department does not comment on deployments of the WC-135 Constant Phoenix aircraft used to collect samples from the atmosphere to detect and analyze nuclear explosions.
Haley, the current president of the U.N. Security Council, said members were working on a statement condemning the latest failed missile launch.
"We are conducting a practical and more intensive exercise than ever", South Korean pilot Colonel Lee Bum-chul told reporters.
South Korea's acting president, Hwang Kyo-ahn, at a meeting with top officials on Thursday, repeatedly called for the military and security ministries to maintain vigilance.
In the face of the USA moves, North Korea said on Friday the state of affairs on the Korean peninsula was "extremely perilous". "Through this exercise, I am sure we can deter war and remove our enemy's intention to provoke us".
The political decision of whether or not the United States is going to attack North Korea rests at least in part on the effectiveness of the $40 billion USA missile defense system, and its ability to shoot down retaliatory strikes from North Korea.
But he warned: "They are doing a lot of bluster and a lot of threats, and they might misplay that hand and blunder into a war".
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