WASHINGTON — Adm. Timothy Keating, the U.S. commander in the Pacific region, said the military is ready to handle any orders it might receive in response to North Korea's threatened missile launches and potential illicit shipments.

"North Korea's activities are very disturbing and unsettling to all of us," Keating told an audience at the Atlantic Council policy analysis group yesterday in response to a question.

The military is prepared to protect "American property, American citizens and American territory," Keating said. "We don't want to tip our hand too much."

The U.S. has been tracking a North Korean vessel on grounds that it may be carrying nuclear or missile technology barred from transfer under two United Nations Security Council resolutions. North Korea has threatened moves such as a nuclear test and missile launches earlier this year.

Yesterday, the North criticized the U.S. for positioning missile defense systems around Hawai'i, calling the deployment part of a plot to attack the regime. The North said it would bolster its nuclear arsenal in retaliation.

North Korea's actions also have prompted Defense Secretary Robert Gates and President Obama to reiterate the U.S. commitment to mutual defense treaties with South Korea and Japan. The military is ready to carry out any orders that Obama and Gates might issue, Keating said.