Amid increasingly intense rhetoric from the Trump administration in response to the test launch of an intercontinental ballistic missile by North Korea, Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Bob Corker says the U.S. must continue to pursue economic sanctions against the "rogue, brutal regime."

“Kim Jong-un is obviously determined to advance North Korea's nuclear and ballistic missile capabilities, and while many believe that no amount of economic pressure will stop him because he believes a nuclear weapon is key to his survival, we must continue to pursue this course until we believe we have done all that is possible peacefully,” Corker, R-Tenn., said in a statement late Wednesday.

“It is clear that China still is not doing enough, and I applaud the Trump administration for recently targeting Chinese entities who are doing business with North Korea and helping prop up the economy of a rogue, brutal regime."

On Thursday, President Donald Trump said, "we have some pretty severe things we’re thinking about" in response to the ICBM test, which showed a significant advancement in North Korean technology with a rocket that has the potential to hit Alaska.

Trump's statement comes one day after UN Ambassador Nikki Haley said military options against North Korea are not off the table.

"The United States is prepared to use the full range of our capabilities to defend ourselves and our allies. One of our capabilities lies with our considerable military forces," she said. "We will use them if we must, but we prefer not to have to go in that direction."

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Corker said he will continue to look for options for the Senate to help the administration defend against North Korea. That includes a possible travel ban, or similar action.

In the wake of Ohio student Otto Warmbier recently returning to the U.S. and dying after spending months in prison in North Korea, Corker floated the idea of banning recreational travel to the hermit nation. He reiterated that idea Wednesday, saying he is working on legislative language to that effect.

“Tourist travel to North Korea is a very bad idea. Not only does it put our citizens in jeopardy and our government in a very precarious situation when individuals are detained, but it also serves as a source of revenue for a regime that brutally abuses its own people," Corker said in a statement.

"Our office is taking a very close look at what travel restrictions should be put in place and is in the process of developing legislative language.”

The senator didn't specify when any legislation may be filed.

Reach Dave Boucher at 615-259-8892, dboucher@tennessean.com and on Twitter @Dave_Boucher1.