U.S. President Donald Trump called North Korean leader Kim Jong-un "short and fat" in a tit-for-tat move, a senior White House adviser said Sunday.

Trump tweeted Saturday that Kim had insulted him by calling him "old," "when I would NEVER call him 'short and fat.'"

"I think that was the president just responding the way he does to somebody who insulted him first," White House senior adviser Kellyanne Conway said in an interview on ABC.

This compilation image shows AP file photos of U.S. President Donald Trump (L) and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.

Trump and Kim have engaged in a war of words over North Korea's nuclear and ballistic missile programs. The American president has dubbed the North Korean leader "Little Rocket Man," while Kim has called Trump a "mentally deranged U.S. dotard."

On Saturday, North Korea denounced the warnings Trump has issued to the regime during his ongoing trip to Asia, saying the "reckless remarks" of an "old lunatic like Trump will never scare us or stop our advance."

Conway told ABC: "What's helpful in full context is a 13-day trip where the president is very focused on global security, and combating terrorism and most importantly containing a nuclearized North Korea."

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