Trump defense secretary nominee Pete Hesgeth ruffled feathers in S. Korea with his written statement to the Senate panel overseeing his confirmation

John Kirby, White House national security communications adviser, said of Hegseth's remarks on North Korea's status as a nuclear power: "We've not made such a recognition. I can't speak to what the incoming team will—how they'll characterize it. We've not gone so far as to make that recognition."

South Korea said denuclearization was still the goal after President Donald Trump used a phrase that could imply recognition of North Korea as a nuclear-armed state.

Seoul stressed Wednesday that Pyongyang cannot hold nuclear state status, rejecting U.S. defense secretary nominee Pete Hegseth's reference to the North as a "nuclear power."

If I had beene one of the senators questioning Pete Hegseth during his confirmation hearing, this is what I would have asked:

Seoul says North Korea ‘can never be recognised as a nuclear-armed state’ under the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.

Pete Hegseth, President-elect Donald Trump’s pick for Pentagon chief, referred to North Korea as a “nuclear power” in a written statement for Tuesday’s confirmation hearing – shattering a longstanding taboo by granting such a designation to Kim Jong-un’s regime and drawing considerable attention in Seoul.

A senator told Hegseth: "I suggest you do a little homework before you prepare for these types of negotiations."

In a heated Senate confirmation hearing for Pete Hegseth, Sen. Tammy Duckworth grilled the proposed defense secretary over the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, asking him if he could name one member and how many countries were in the bloc.

From the arrest of South Korea’s Yoon to a Japanese pop star’s sex scandal, here are a few highlights from SCMP’s recent Asia reporting.

Republicans appear poised to confirm Trump’s controversial nominee to lead the government’s largest and most complex agency