US President Donald Trump told Japanese leader Shinzo Abe on Wednesday that Washington will continue to build its military capabilities to defend against a North Korean attack, the White House said.

The pair spoke by phone one day after Pyongyang fired a ballistic missile into the Sea of Japan, in what analysts said was a warning ahead of a US-China summit at which North Korea's accelerating atomic weapons program is set to top the agenda.

Trump "made clear that the United States will continue to strengthen its ability to deter and defend itself and its allies with the full range of its military capabilities," the White House said in a statement about the call.

Source: AFP