Tillerson urges SE Asia allies to shun N Korea

US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson urged his South East Asian colleagues on Thursday to take further steps to isolate North Korea's pariah regime.

President Donald Trump's top diplomat met foreign ministers and top envoys from the 10-strong Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in Washington.

North Korea is under UN sanctions targeting its efforts to develop a nuclear missile arsenal, but Washington wants its Asian allies to do more.

Deputy assistant secretary for East Asian and Pacific Affairs Patrick Murphy Murphy stressed ties with Pyongyang are a sovereign matter for ASEAN states, but confirmed that Tillerson had urged them to review their positions.

The call came as the US House of Representatives on Thursday overwhelmingly voted in favor of broadening sanctions against North Korea, including efforts to cut the regime's sources of international financing.

Lawmakers voted 419 to 1 for the bill, which now heads to the Senate.

Rhetoric between the West and the reclusive regime have spiked in recent weeks, and Pyongyang has threatened to carry out a sixth nuclear test that would further inflame tensions.

The legislation prohibits vessels owned by North Korea or other countries that violate UNSC resolutions on the country from operating in US waters or docking at US ports.

In a bid to cut off Pyongyang's access to hard currency, the measure sanctions persons or entities that import North Korean coal, iron or iron ore beyond UN-imposed limits, or that facilitate the regime's online business activities.

The measure requires President Donald Trump's administration to determine within 90 days whether the North Korean government should be re-designated as a state sponsor of terrorism.

Pyongyang was removed from the US list in 2008.