North Korea continues to fuel fears of World War 3 with its increasingly aggressive rhetoric against the United States and its neighbouring countries.
Mr Morrell said: “I think this programme is incredibly important to Kim from a security perspective and from a political perspective.
“He’s not going to stop until he’s demonstrated the capability of putting a U.S. city at risk of nuclear attack.”
North Korea’s leader Kim Jong-un has been engaging US President Donald Trump in an escalating war of words which experts claim is putting the world on the brink of World War 3.
Mr Morrell warned that the verbal spat between the two leaders could affect the “credibility” of the US unless President Trump was prepared to order an attack on North Korea.
Speaking to CBS This Morning, the former CIA director continued: “If you are going to make a threat – if you are going to say that if North Korea doesn’t give up nuclear programme you are going to take military action – you have better had already decided you are going to.
“If North Korea doesn’t blink and they move forward, and you end up doing nothing, you have lost a tremendous amount of credibility. I think the language in that respect is dangerous.”
It comes after Mr Trump‘s National Security Advisor revealed the President had ordered troops to prepare for military action against North Korea.
HR McMaster said: “I don’t want to get into the specifics of military plans and estimates but I will tell you that the President has asked us to continue to refine our military option should we have to use it.
“Of course, we are working on that very closely with our very close ally South Korea, who is the closest to this danger, and with Japan. But what we have to do is everything we can now to resolve this sort of war.”
General McMaster said the US needed to work hard to put an end to Pyongyang’s threat to world peace as the rogue state continues to taunt the international community with its defiance.
North Korea has been ramping up its nuclear programmes and has threatened US territories which led to President Trump insisting he will “take care” of the situation.
Mr Trump has previously called on both China and Russia to help scupper the hermit kingdom’s nuclear arsenal.
The US President has now promised to “take care” of the situation as he delivered an ominous warning to Kim Jong-un.
He said: “This situation should have been taken care of long before I got into office when it was much easier to handle. But it will be taken care of. We have no choice.
“America and its allies will take all necessary steps to achieve a denuclearisation and ensure that this regime cannot threaten the world.”