A former U.S. military commander says North Korea will be able to develop intercontinental ballistic missiles tipped with nuclear warheads within the next five to seven years.
Retired General Burwell Bell, who served as commander of the U.S. Forces in South Korea, told Seoul-based Yonhap News Agency that North Korea's third nuclear test shows that the secretive state has come closer to developing nuclear-tipped missiles that can reach the United States.
He urged Seoul and Washington to work together to counter future threats from the North.
He added the two allies should not rule anything out, including a pre-emptive strike, and said the failure to have such a plan in place would amount to a "dereliction of duty."

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