Kim Jong-un warns 'button for nuclear weapons is on my table'

Kim Jong-un has warned President Donald Trump that the nuclear button sits within reach on his desk.

In a Monday morning speech, the North Korean leader claimed: "The entire mainland of the US is within the range of our nuclear weapons and the nuclear button is always on the desk of my office.”

He added: “They should accurately be aware that this is not a threat but a reality."

Kim made the threat during his annual New Year's Day address, adding that his regime was a “responsible nuclear nation that loves peace" that does “not intend to use nuclear powers."

He also announced that during the next twelve months he will focus on "mass producing nuclear warheads and ballistic missiles for operational deployment,” but said he was "open to dialogue" with South Korea.

"When it comes to North-South relations, we should lower the military tensions on the Korean Peninsula to create a peaceful environment. Both the North and the South should make efforts," he said.

When Mr Trump was asked about the threat at his New Year’s Eve party at Mar-a-Lago, he said: “We’ll see, we’ll see.”