Larry Kudlow, the economist and former adviser to President Ronald Reagan, said the U.S. has to be willing to fund investment in missile defense to ward off threats from North Korea, which this week successfully tested a missile that could deliver a nuclear warhead to Alaska.

“We used to call it ‘peace through strength.’ I was around when Reagan started the missile defense system, adroitly referred to as ‘Star Wars’,” Kudlow said on CNBC. “It turns outs he was way, way ahead of his time. The United States has to be willing to fund tremendous investment in missile defense. We need to make sure it is financed properly.”

On Tuesday, North Korea strongman Kim Jong Un revealed his country had successfully tested an intercontinental ballistic missile that reached an altitude of more than 1,741 miles and traveled 578 miles from the launch site. Kim vowed Wednesday that his nation will