Trump: North Korea's 'reckless pursuit' of nuclear weapons could soon threaten the US

President Donald Trump struck a dire note of warning about North Korea's nuclear ambitions in his State of the Union address Tuesday night.

"North Korea's reckless pursuit of nuclear missiles could very soon threaten our homeland," Trump said.

The president said the United States was applying "maximum pressure" to prevent any such attack.

"Past experience has taught us that complacency and concessions only invite aggression and provocation," Trump said. "I will not repeat the mistakes of past administrations that got us into this very dangerous position."

Last year, North Korea test launched at least three intercontinental ballistic missiles, including a Hwasong-15 in late November that raised concerns in the U.S. defense community as showed the regime's powerful new missile can reach more than 8,000 miles, including major cities on the U.S. East Coast.

Indeed, the president's harsh comments about North Korea follows CIA Director Mike Pompeo predicting Monday in a BBC broadcast that Pyongyang will be capable of delivering a nuclear-tipped ICBM to the U.S. mainland in "a handful of months." READ MORE