WASHINGTON, Feb. 29 (Yonhap) - Growing military cooperation among North Korea, Russia, China and Iran raises the possibility of "simultaneous conflicts with multiple nuclear-armed adversaries," a top U.S. general warned Thursday.

Gen. Anthony Cotton, commander of U.S. Strategic Command, made the remarks during a session of the Senate Armed Services Committee, stressing that his command will "always" be "ready to fight tonight."

"We are confronting not one, but two nuclear peers -- the Russian Federation and the People's Republic of China. This reality, combined by missile developments in North Korea, Iran's nuclear ambitions and the growing relationships amongst those nations, adds new layers of complexity to our strategic calculus," he said.

"It also raises the possibility of simultaneous conflicts with multiple nuclear-armed adversaries," he added.

His remarks came amid growing concerns about burgeoning military cooperation between Pyongyang and Moscow.

The United States has revealed that the North provided Russia with ballistic missiles, munitions and other pieces of military equipment for use in Ukraine, while in return, it is seeking assistance from Moscow, including fighter aircraft, surface-to-air missiles, armored vehicles and ballistic missile production equipment.