Biden says N. Korea has more 'lethal' missiles because of Trump

WASHINGTON -- US Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden said Sunday that North Korea now possesses a greater number of missiles that are also more dangerous than before because of US President Donald Trump.

He also accused Trump of embracing dictators, such as North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, while undermining the country's relationship with its traditional allies.

"He embraces every dictator in sight, and he pokes his finger in the eye of all our friends," the former vice president said in an interview with US TV network CBS News' "60 Minutes."

"And so what's happening now is you have the situation in (North) Korea where they have more lethal missiles, and they have more capacity than they had before," Biden added.

His remarks come after the communist state unveiled a new longer-range intercontinental ballistic missile in a military parade staged Oct. 10 to mark the 75th anniversary of the founding of its ruling Workers' Party.

Trump has held three meetings with the North Korean leader between June 2018 and June 2019, and claims his "good relationship" with Kim is what prevented a nuclear war with North Korea.

"Guess what. It would be a nuclear war, and he does have plenty of nuclear capability. In the meantime, I have a very good relationship with him. ... We have a very good relationship, and there's no war," Trump said in the last presidential TV debate held Thursday.

Biden insisted the way Trump treated friends and foes has left his country less secure than before.

"Our lack of standing in the world," he said when asked what the biggest foreign threat facing the US was.

"You have our NATO allies backing away from us because they say they can't count on us," Biden said. "So he's moving away from what has allowed us to bring the world together." (Yonhap)