South Korea, the United States and Japan agreed Wednesday that North Korea's intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) development poses a "new-phase" security threat, Yonhap news reported.

In a trilateral video conference of defense officials, they reaffirmed a united resolve to apply "maximum pressure" on Pyongyang in a bid to stop its provocations and resume denuclearization talks.

The working-level consultation came four days after the nuclear-armed North test-fired a Hwasong-14 ICBM, the second in a month.

The three sides "strongly condemned the North Korean launch of the ICBM-class missile as a clear and flagrant violation of multiple United Nations Security Council resolutions," according to Seoul's defense ministry.

They stressed that the North's nuclear and missile programs "represent a new-phase threat that's grave and urgent in the peace and security of the Northeast Asian region and the U.S."

Source : Mena