The White House has said that the United States will continue to work with allies and partners to hold Kim Jong-un accountable regardless of the success or failure of the regime’s missile launches.

John Kirby, a spokesperson for the National Security Council at the White House, made the remarks during a press briefing on Wednesday when asked about the cause of the North’s failed launch of what it claims was a spy satellite earlier in the day.

Dismissing the relevance of the cause of the failure, he stressed that the major concern is the knowledge gained by the North’s scientists and engineers with each launch that facilitates the development of military capabilities that are a threat not only to the Korean Peninsula but to the region.

Kirby said that such development is the reason why the U.S. will continue to work with allies and partners to hold the regime responsible, adding that the U.S. will ensure that the proper military capabilities in the region, including training and readiness, are in place to deal with the threats.