Administration

Trump and Putin discuss ‘very dangerous’ North Korea situation

President Trump spoke over the phone with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday to discuss the “very dangerous” situation in North Korea, the White House announced.

The White House issued a brief statement acknowledging the call and saying that the two leaders “discussed working together to resolve the very dangerous situation in North Korea.”

“President Trump thanked President Putin for acknowledging America’s strong economic performance in his annual press conference,” the White House added in a statement.

North Korea hit a milestone in its ballistic missile program last month when it announced its latest missile test had the capability of reaching the U.S. mainland.

Defense Secretary James Mattis confirmed that the latest test in late November was the most advanced the country has successfully carried out so far.

“It went higher, frankly, than any previous shot they’ve taken,” Mattis said at the time. “The bottom line is it is a continued effort to build a ballistic missile threat that endangers world peace, regional peace and certainly the United States.”

Updated: 7:45 p.m.