North Korea's push to acquire a nuclear-armed missile capable of threatening America and other nations is a "clear and present danger", US defence secretary Jim Mattis has said.

Former general James Mattis looks set to be confirmed as Donald Trump's defence secretary after the Senate voted to grant him an exemption to run the Pentagon as a recently-retired officer.

Retired general James Mattis has said he believes Russian president Vladimir Putin is trying to "break" the Nato alliance.

US president-elect Donald Trump is nominating controversial retired general James Mattis to be his defence secretary.