The vice chief of the U.S Joint Chiefs of Staff(JCS) said on Tuesday that the United States' missile defense capability is "clearly" focused on North Korea and must continue to advance to deal with threats from the country.

John Hyten made the remarks during a webinar hosted by Washington-based think tank the Center for Strategic and International Studies.

Hyten said that the U.S.' national missile defense capability is clearly focused on North Korea right now, not on China, Russia and Iran.

When asked about the implications of the North Korean missile threat on the U.S.' development of next-generation interceptors, Hyden said that because there is a chance the North could actually fire at the U.S., the country wants the ability to shoot a missile down. 
 
The vice JCS chief added that North Korea is continuing to move forward in its capabilities, which means on the defensive side, the U.S. has to continue to move forward as well.