Asia/Pacific

Secretary of State John Kerry put North Korea on notice Tuesday that the United States is ready to respond to the country's escalating threats over the past few weeks.

Kerry made the remarks after a meeting with South Korean foreign minister Yun Byung-se ahead of his own visit to South Korea, Japan and China next week. The remarks are aimed in part at calming tensions on the peninsula by reassuring South Korea and Japan of the U.S. commitment to their security against their nuclear-armed neighbor.

“I reiterate again, the United States will do what is necessary to defend ourselves and defend our allies Korea and Japan. We are fully prepared and capable of doing so,” Kerry said. “We will not be subject to irrational or reckless provocation.”

Washington is essentially flying blind in predicting whether North Korea's recent aggressiveness is setting the stage for war or just another case of saber rattling to ease economic sanctions imposed by the international community.

South Korea will make its case for the right to enrich uranium during high-level meetings with U.S. officials this week ahead of a U.S. visit by the country's president next month, South Korean media report.

Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se will meet Tuesday with Secretary of State John Kerry, while chief nuclear envoy Lim Sung-nam is scheduled to meet with Glyn Davies, the State Department's special representative for North Korea policy. The visits aim in part to smooth the way ahead of next month's visit by President Park Geun-hye.

While North Korea's saber-rattling will feature prominently in the discussions, Yun is also expected to make the case that the United States should revise the 1974 agreement that bans South Korea from enriching uranium, the Yonhap News Agency reports. Park has made ending the ban and allowing the country to reprocess spent atomic fuel a key plank for U.S.-South Korean relations.

The United States has launched 336 drone strikes over the past decade — all but 10 of them under President Obama.

"We are not seeing changes to North Korean military posture," White House press secretary Jay Carney said.

The U.S. military deployed F-22 stealth fighters to South Korea on Sunday amid heightened tensions with North Korea.

Caroline Kennedy, the daughter of former President John F. Kennedy, is reportedly being vetted as the United States' next ambassador to Japan.

"He keeps going further and further out," said King, expressing fears Kim's provocations could spiral out of control.

The administration also acknowledged that Pyongyang has a "long record of bellicose rhetoric."

The White House has criticized the North for rising tensions and urged leaders to tone down their rhetoric.