German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Friday that she opposed any use of force to resolve the conflict with North Korea, after President Donald Trump said the US military was "locked and loaded".

"I don't envision a military solution to this conflict but rather consistent work as we've observed at the United Nations Security Council," Merkel told reporters.

"Germany will very intensively take part in the options for resolution that are not military but I consider a verbal escalation to be the wrong response," she said when asked about Trump's latest tweets on North Korea.