The U.S. National Intelligence Council has identified North Korea as a nuclear weapon state in a report.

This comes after another report by the U.S. Joint Forces Command drew controversy last week for identifying the communist state as a nuclear power.

The intelligence council's report released in November said, "The possibility of a future disruptive regime change or collapse occurring in a nuclear weapon state such as North Korea also continues to raise questions regarding the ability of weak states to control and secure their nuclear arsenals."

A U.S. State Department official said Washington presumes Pyongyang has several nuclear bombs, but does not consider the North a nuclear power.

He added he hopes the Joint Forces Command soon corrects its mistake in identifying the North as a nuclear state, saying the report reflects the views of individuals, not U.S. policy.