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| US SecDef Jim Mattis |
A war with North Korea would be the worst in most people's lifetimes, according to US Defense Secretary Jim Mattis.
WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — A possible diplomatic failure and subsequent war with North Korea would be a disaster, posing a threat to many countries, including Russia, US Defense Secretary James Mattis told CBS News in an interview on Sunday.
"This [North Korean] regime is a threat to the region, to Japan, to South Korea. And in the event of war, they would bring danger to China and to Russia as well. But the bottom line is it would be a catastrophic war if this turns into a combat if we're not able to resolve this situation through diplomatic means," Mattis said.
Mattis added that a possible armed conflict with North Korea would be the worst in most people’s lifetimes due to the fact that North Korea possessed "hundreds of artillery cannons and rocket launchers" within range of South Korean capital of Seoul.
Tensions around North Korea's activities with both nuclear and non-nuclear weapons have drastically escalated in recent months, after Pyongyang conducted a number of nuclear tests and ballistic missile launches in violation of the UN Security Council's resolutions.
This story first appeared on Sputnik & is reposted here with permission.