The U.S. says it will take necessary steps to ensure the security of the American homeland as well as that of South Korea and Japan while denouncing North Korea’s latest launch of an intercontinental ballistic missile(ICBM).

National Security Council spokesperson Adam Hodge made the remark in a statement released on Wednesday as he described the ICBM launch as “a brazen violation of multiple UN Security Council resolutions” that raises “tensions and risks destabilizing the security situation in the region.”

The statement then called on all countries to condemn such violations while urging the North to come to the negotiating table for serious discussions.

Hodge said “the door has not closed on diplomacy, but Pyongyang must immediately cease its destabilizing actions and instead choose diplomatic engagement.”

[Photo : YONHAP News]