US and South Korea should stop provocation to release tension in Korea.

dongsoola · Mar 27, 2016

I know what many people are thinking.

You guys gonna say North Korea started this first by threatening with hydrogen bomb and firing ICBM missiles.

But the truth is that North Korea just tested hydrogen bomb in the underground facility in their own land. The truth is that North Korea fired satellite delivery rockets from their land according to international regulation.

Its US and South Korea who interprets this as serious provocation.

Did you notice US and South Korea always refer to North Korean rocket as "missile" rather than "satellite delivery rocket" ?

They do that on purpose that they want you to think North Korea is threatening.

Anyway, they used that opportunity to raise tension in Korea by doing stepped up joint military exercise that mobilized 690,000 troops and all these high tech weapons.

They closed down KaeSung complex which was the last hope of Korean unification.

Then they actually practiced landing on North Korean shores to invade.

So now North Korea started openly testing military rocket, missiles.
North Korea tested re-entry head part of missile which is a vital technology for ICBM.

Then South Korea/US introduced something with savage name called "beheading operation" which sounds like ISIS whose purpose is to eliminate North Korea leader.

All this is just because North Korea experimented with hydrogen bomb on their land that US frequently does. All this is just because North Korea have fired satellite delivery rockets that was carried out by countries in the world over 6500 times.

Please dont be one of the zombies who believe North Korea started all this.
Its all started by South Korea and US.

Nightmare515 · Mar 27, 2016

dongsoola said: ↑

I know what many people are thinking.

You guys gonna say North Korea started this first by threatening with hydrogen bomb and firing ICBM missiles.

But the truth is that North Korea just tested hydrogen bomb in the underground facility in their own land. The truth is that North Korea fired satellite delivery rockets from their land according to international regulation.

Its US and South Korea who interprets this as serious provocation.

Did you notice US and South Korea always refer to North Korean rocket as "missile" rather than "satellite delivery rocket" ?

They do that on purpose that they want you to think North Korea is threatening.

Anyway, they used that opportunity to raise tension in Korea by doing stepped up joint military exercise that mobilized 690,000 troops and all these high tech weapons.

They closed down KaeSung complex which was the last hope of Korean unification.

Then they actually practiced landing on North Korean shores to invade.

So now North Korea started openly testing military rocket, missiles.
North Korea tested re-entry head part of missile which is a vital technology for ICBM.

Then South Korea/US introduced something with savage name called "beheading operation" which sounds like ISIS whose purpose is to eliminate North Korea leader.

All this is just because North Korea experimented with hydrogen bomb on their land that US frequently does. All this is just because North Korea have fired satellite delivery rockets that was carried out by countries in the world over 6500 times.

Please dont be one of the zombies who believe North Korea started all this.
Its all started by South Korea and US.
Click to expand...

Tell N Korea to stop brainwashing it's own people, starving it's own people, putting it's own people in concentration camps to be starved, beaten, abused, raped, and worked to death, them and their children and their childrens children.

Tell them to act like part of the 21st century civilized world and maybe the US and S Korea will get their collective foot off N Korea's throat.

waltky · Aug 12, 2016

China takin' advantage of No. Korean desperation...

Report: North Korea exports of iron ore to China surging
Aug. 11, 2016 -- North Korea is exporting thousands of tons of iron ore to China.

Trade in North Korean raw materials has surged despite China's standing agreement to implement the United Nations Security Council sanctions, according to a recent report. A source in China who spoke to South Korean news service Daily NK said North Korea is exporting "thousands of tons of iron ore, daily." Iron ore is being loaded on 30- to 40t-class vehicles and being transported from the North Korean border town of Musan to China across the Tumen River, the source said. The trucks travel to Helong. Sometimes high-speed freight trains are involved in the transportation of the goods, according to the report. The source said the "sudden activities" involving North Korea is a source of bewilderment for local Chinese residents. New trade flows are also emerging in the Chinese border city of Dandong.

A source in the city told Daily NK after the Sino-Korean Friendship Bridge reopened in February, the number of vehicles going into North Korea has steadily increased. "The trucks are fully stocked with various products and equipment materials and thousands of 20t-class vehicles headed for Sinuiju [North Korea] indicate a tenfold increase than before," the source said. Locals are saying the activities are a response to retaliation for THAAD deployment in South Korea, the source said. The observations are being made at a time when China-North Korea trade has continued unabated and even increased after the adoption of stronger sanctions at the U.N.

William Brown, an East Asia specialist at Georgetown University, said trade statistics from the first half of the year indicate that trade with North Korea decreased significantly for Russia, India and Brazil. But the only major country that has not decreased North Korea trade is China, a sign North Korea is increasing its trade dependency on Beijing, Brown said, according to Radio Free Asia. China's export volume to North Korea was $796 million from April to June, up more than 31 percent from January to March, according to Chinese data and South Korean news service News 1.

http://www.upi.com/Top_News/World-N...to-China-surging/3681470932108/?spt=sec&or=tn
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North Korea sold fishing rights to China for $75M, source says
Aug. 11, 2016 -- North Korea sold its state fishing rights to coastal waters on both sides of the peninsula, according to South Korean intelligence officials.

Pyongyang earned about $75 million from selling its maritime rights to China and the measure is driving the surge in Chinese fishing vessels near the peninsula, Yonhap reported. All money earned from the sales of sovereign fishing rights is going to the Kim Jong Un regime, South Korean intelligence officials say. Sales of rights cover waters proximal to the Northern Limit Line, a disputed maritime border between North and South Korea. South Korea's coast guard has been confronting the increased presence of Chinese boats in disputed as well as territorial waters in recent years.

A South Korean intelligence official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said the rights are being sold through an "intermediary trading company" but that in the future North Korea is likely to be in direct charge of the sales of the rights. North Korea has allowed Chinese boats to operate in its sovereign waters since 2004, according to the official, but the agreement does not cover the area near the Northern Limit Line. The presence of about 900-1,000 Chinese boats near the NLL, however, indicates that the status quo has since changed, and that China has purchased additional fishing rights from a regime that is desperate for cash.

South Korean defense ministry spokesman Moon Sang-kyun said Thursday that specific information cannot be shared with the press but confirmed the Chinese vessels are present near the NLL in the East Sea, or the Sea of Japan. Chinese fishing boats were believed to have been in operation only along the western coast prior to the latest reports. The presence of illegal Chinese boats in South Korean territorial waters in June resulted in an unprecedented joint action by the United Nations Command in June.

http://www.upi.com/Top_News/World-N...-75M-source-says/6661470920831/?spt=sec&or=tn
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waltky · Aug 15, 2016

Granny says, "Dat's right - dat lil' fatboy crazy enough, he liable to do it...

North Korea says it is preparing for nuclear strike against United States
Sunday 14th August, 2016 - North Korea says it is preparing for a preemptive nuclear strike against the United States. The country says it has switched the status of its military from defense mode to attack mode.

The deployment by the United States of three B-52 stealth bombers to Andersen Air Force Base at Guam earlier this week has unnerved the North Korean regime which said Saturday the deployment was preparation for a planned nuclear strike on North Korea. The government said if it it sees any sign an invasion underway it will launch a nuclear strike against the U.S. The Yonhap news agency based in Seoul in South Korea confirmed the Nortth Korean government statement which it picked up from the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), the North Korean official news agency. "The U.S. attempt to invade the DPRK (Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea) is getting evermore reckless," KCNA said in a signed commentary.

The U.S. Air Force says it deployed the 3 B-52 to Guam on Tuesday, largely because of the recent rhetoric coming out of North Korea. Pyongyang however believes the United States is preparing for a pre-emptive nuclear strike. "The U.S. evermore undisguised reinforcement of the nuclear force goes to clearly prove that it is trying to make a preemptive nuclear strike at the DPRK a fait accompli," said the commentary.

Warning that it could strike first, North Korea said: "The right to make a preemptive nuclear strike is not the monopoly of the U.S." "The DPRK revolutionary armed forces switched from their existing mode of military counter-action to the mode of a preemptive strike to cope with the enemy's ridiculous military hysteria to undermine its sovereignty and right to existence," the KCNA statement said. "All their operational groups are fully ready to deal a merciless and annihilating blow to the enemy if they make even the slightest provocation," it added.

Saturday's developments coincide with an acceleration of conscription in North Korea. The government has introduced a new recruitment regulation which requires all men aged up to their mid-30s, who have dodged military service in the past, to now join up. University students, factory workers, and men with families have been exempted in the past. They are now getting call-up notices to report for physical examinations.

http://www.bignewsnetwork.com/news/...ring-for-nuclear-strike-against-united-states
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waltky · Aug 23, 2016

North Korea test-fires submarine-launched ballistic missile...

North Korea submarine fires ballistic missile
Wed, 24 Aug 2016 - North Korea has fired a ballistic missile from a submarine, which flew for 500km (300 miles) before falling in the sea, say the US and South Korea.

The KN-11 missile was launched from waters near Sinpo and flew about 500km (300 miles) before falling into the Sea of Japan, a US official said. South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff said the missile fell inside Japan's Air Defence Identification Zone. It comes as South Korea and the US begin annual military drills, which routinely anger Pyongyang. Ulchi Freedom involves about 80,000 US and South Korean troops in a largely computer-simulated defence of South Korea from a fictional North Korean invasion. North Korea, which sees these drills as a rehearsal for invasion, recently warned they were pushing the Korean peninsula towards the brink of a war and threatened a "pre-emptive nuclear strike" in retaliation. The launch also coincided with a meeting of foreign ministers from Japan, China and South Korea in Tokyo.

North Korea is banned by the UN from any use of ballistic or nuclear technology. But in recent months it has carried out repeated missile launches, and is believed to be close to conducting its fifth test of a nuclear device. Wednesday's early morning launch appears to have been its most successful test yet of a submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM). SLBMs are of particular concern because of the mobility of submarines and the ease with which launch preparation can remain undetected. The South's military said it "seemed to be aimed at raising military tension in response to the Seoul-Washington military drill", the Yonhap news agency reports.

North Korea test-fires submarine-launched ballistic missile

It said it would "sternly and strongly respond to any provocation by North Korea". Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said the missile "poses a grave threat to Japan's security, and is an unforgivable act that damages regional peace and stability markedly". He said Japan had lodged a protest, though did not comment on South Korean reports that the missile fell into Japan's ADIZ, an area of airspace over which a country exercises security controls. The US State Department said it "strongly condemned" this and previous missile tests and would raise concerns at the UN.

Last month, the US and South Korea agreed to deploy a missile defence system to counter threats from the North. North Korea has conducted four nuclear tests to date - its most recent claimed to have used a hydrogen bomb - but despite its claims, it is not yet believed to have the ability to mount a nuclear device onto a warhead. Pyongyang has also been angered recently by several high profile defections, including its deputy ambassador to the UK, Thae Yong-ho. Mr Thae, thought to be the highest-ranking North Korean official ever to defect, was branded "human scum" by Pyongyang.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-37171608
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waltky · Aug 28, 2016

Granny says Obama oughta send our stealth subs to sink dey's subs an' wipe dat grin offa fatboy's face...

North Korea planning submarines that can carry multiple SLBMs
Aug. 26, 2016 -- North Korea's Kim Jong Un ordered the construction of new submarines so Pyongyang has the capability to fire off multiple rounds of SLBMs.

Kim had asked Korean Workers' Party cadres to build the new submersible by Sept. 9, 2018, the 70th anniversary of the founding of the North Korean government, the Tokyo Shimbun reported on Friday. The mandate was issued in June 2015 and Kim allegedly told his military industry chief Ri Man Gon that if he succeeds, he would "raise a statue" in Ri's honor, according to the report. Only one missile can be mounted on the 2,000-ton Sinpo-class submarine believed to have been used for the SLBM launch on Wednesday. Launches also can take place only at a depth of 10 meters below the water's surface with the current technology.

North Koreas Kim Jong Un celebrating Pyongyangs Wednesday SLBM launch, according to state media. Kim is planning to bring more powerful submarines into production so multiple rounds of missiles can be launched, Japan press reported Friday.

North Korea is concurrently planning the development of a 3,000-ton submarine capable of carrying three submarine-launched ballistic missiles, Japan's Nihon Keizai reported on Friday. While North Korea touted the Wednesday SLBM launch as a victory on Thursday, Pyongyang has yet to achieve final-phase induction, meaning the technology has not been perfected. Kim has been very attentive to the SLBM development program, and visited the development site more than 10 times prior to launch according to Pyongyang's KCNA and Rodong Sinmun.

KCNA has stated Kim "has a direct tight grasp on the construction of powerful strategic submarines and ballistic missiles, owing to the dedication of his labor and heart to the tenacious push" for their development. Kim Keun-sik, a professor of political diplomacy at South Korea's Kyungnam University told JoongAng Ilbo the SLBM could be the "trademark" of the Kim Jong Un period of rule, since development did not begin until after he assumed power. According to Japan's Defense White Paper North Korea retains 78 submarines and other submersibles, including the 3,500-ton Golf-class submarine that Russia sold to North Korea for scrap in the '90s.

http://www.upi.com/Top_News/World-N...y-multiple-SLBMs/6361472267511/?spt=sec&or=tn
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See also:

U.N. Security Council condemns North Korea missile test
Aug. 27, 2016 -- The United Nations Security Council strongly condemned a ballistic missile launch by North Korea this week, saying it is a violation of an international ban on long-range missile testing.

A statement approved by all 15 members of the security council called North Korea's actions a "grave violation" and a "flagrant violation" of security council resolutions calling on North Korea to halt their intercontinental ballistic missile system.

The United Nations Security Council condemned a missile launch by North Korea this week. All 15 nations endorsed a statement calling it a "grave violation" of previous council resolutions banning long-range missile systems.

The security council said the continued development of long-range missiles contributes to North Korea's development of a nuclear weapons system that destabilizes the region and inflames tensions on the Korean peninsula and northeast Asia. The security council statement called on U.N. member states to "redouble their efforts" at a weapons embargo and economic sanctions against North Korea as a result of the missile tests.

North Korean President Kim Jong Un hailed the launch, which happened from a submarine off the North Korean coast, as a military success and show of strength. The North Korean government released video of the missile launch as proof of its success. Kim ordered the production of more submarines that could carry long-range missiles after the test.

http://www.upi.com/Top_News/World-N...rea-missile-test/2131472322168/?spt=sec&or=tn
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waltky · Sep 1, 2016

Granny says, "Dat's right - now fatboy got him a nuclear railroad...

Report: North Korea assembling rail-based missile launchers
Vehicles are being built to launch missiles moving on railways, sources say.

North Korea is constructing a mobile long-range missile launcher that can be transported on rail tracks, according to multiple sources in North Korea. The new system is being assembled at North Korea's June 4 vehicle factory and production began in 2016, Radio Free Asia reported Wednesday. Engineers of Pyongyang's second economic commission began working on the launcher in May, one source on the North Korean side of Gangwon Province told RFA. The plans to operate the mobile launcher were initially suspended due to the short supply of electricity in North Korea and scarcity of steel, the source said. But under a plan, launched in 2014, to modernize North Korean weaponry, the project is now being managed by the second economic commission.

The vehicle factory has been manufacturing six railway-mounted launcher vehicles per month. The trains being used to transport the missile launcher would include about 8 to 14 cars, the source said, adding he had not directly observed the cars. A second source based in North Korea's North Hamgyong Province said he had "heard the news" that North Korea was building vehicles to launch missiles that move over railways, according to RFA. The source said the plan to transport the launcher on rail tracks might have been pursued after China refused to export heavy land-based vehicles to North Korea.

But North Korea's aging railroad system is not an optimal choice, other sources say. North Korea's infrastructure is also vulnerable to damage due to severe weather. Free North Korea Radio director Kim Seong-min told South Korean news service No Cut News heavy rains have been pounding on North Korea's North Hamgyong and Yanggang Provinces. On Monday in the border city of Hyesan, a five-story apartment building collapsed and 80 people were subsequently injured or killed, according to Kim.

http://www.upi.com/Top_News/World-N...issile-launchers/9281472696864/?spt=sec&or=tn
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North Korea soldiers 'given nuclear backpacks' as tensions rise over US-South Korean military exercises
Wednesday 31 August 2016 - Report comes after series of weapons tests by Kim Jong-un's forces

Elite North Korean soldiers are being armed with “nuclear backpacks”, a source has claimed as tensions increase over the authoritarian state’s attempts at military escalation. An anonymous source told Radio Free Asia special units have been formed since March to carry the weapons and had been taking part in simulated training exercises with dummy bombs. “Outstanding soldiers were selected from each reconnaissance platoon and light infantry brigade to form the nuclear backpack unit the size of a battalion,” the source from North Hamgyong province was quoted as saying. The supposed weapons were said to weigh between 10 and 30 kilograms and be able to “spray radioactive material”, possibly uranium, on the enemy. It was impossible to verify the account given to Radio Free Asia, which is funded by the US government. North Korean propaganda showed soldiers wearing rucksacks bearing a yellow and black radiation symbol during a parade celebrating the 70th anniversary of the national Workers' Party in October, while similar backpacks were seen at a procession in 2013. The report came after Kim Jong-un’s administration reportedly executed a vice premier and banished two other top officials to rural areas for dreaded “re-education”.

South Korean officials said Yong-jin, a cabinet minister for education affairs, had been killed, possibly by a firing squad in July for unspecified anti-revolutionary and factional acts. Reports said said Kim first faced an investigation because of the way he was seated during a meeting attended by the Supreme Leader. Kim Yong-chol, a top ruling Workers' Party official in charge of anti-Seoul spy operations, and Choe Hwi, a senior party official dealing with propaganda affairs, had been banished to undertake “revolutionary re-education” programmes. The reported purges came as North Korea continues to intensify its propaganda over joint military exercises being conducted by more than 75,000 American and South Korean troops in “Ulchi Freedom Guardian”. While the North is known to have a small stockpile of nuclear warheads, experts are divided about its ability to mount them on a working missile delivery system.

In a statement earlier this month by US and South Korean forces described the exercises as “non-provocative in nature” and designed to enhance “readiness, protect the region and maintain stability on the Korean peninsula”. But the drills provoked a stream of threats from Pyongyang, which said it would turn Seoul and Washington into a “heap of ashes” with a pre-emptive strike. An editorial published by the state-run Korean Central News Agency on Tuesday accused Barack Obama’s administration of presiding over a “reckless arms build-up” that “cannot but spark off a fresh nuclear arms race among regional countries”. North Korea has made considerable progress on weapons technology this year, including testing a submarine-launched missile for the first time, but it is unclear whether its nuclear material has been developed into a warhead able to be mounted on a missile. It conducted its fourth nuclear explosion in January and followed it up with a series of missile tests, in spite of severe United Nations sanctions.

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/w...nsions-us-south-korean-military-a7217401.html
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waltky · Sep 5, 2016

Fatboy's crusin' fer a bruisin' - China not happy `bout this...

North Korea 'fires three ballistic missiles into sea'
Mon, 05 Sep 2016 - North Korea has fired three ballistic missiles into the waters off its eastern coast, South Korean officials say.

The missiles were launched from the Hwangju region, South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said on Monday, according to the Yonhap news agency. There was no information on the types of missile fired or how far they flew. North Korea is barred from testing nuclear or ballistic missile technology, but recent months have seen it carry out a string of missile tests. It last fired a ballistic missile just two weeks ago from a submarine off its eastern coast, as South Korea and the US began annual military drills which routinely anger the North. On that occasion the KN-11 rocket that was fired flew for about 500km (300 miles) before falling into the Sea of Japan.

This latest test takes place as world leaders meet at the annual G20 economic summit, being hosted for the first time in China. The August rocket launch was considered its most successful test of a submarine-launched ballistic missile. A test of mid-range missiles in June was also considered successful. Tensions have soared since the North carried out its fourth nuclear test in January. In July the US and South Korea said they would deploy an anti-missile system to counter the North's threats, but this has been met with anger from Pyongyang and opposition from China.

Replicas of North Korean Scud-B missile (C) and South Korean Hawk surface-to-air missiles are displayed at the Korean War Memorial in Seoul

What is the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense System (THAAD)?

* Shoots down short- and medium-range ballistic missiles in the terminal phase of their flight
* Uses hit-to-kill technology - where kinetic energy destroys the incoming warhead
* Has a range of 200km and can reach an altitude of 150km
* US has previously deployed it in Guam and Hawaii as a measure against potential attacks from North Korea

1. The enemy launches a missile

2. The Thaad radar system detects the launch, which is relayed to command and control

3. Thaad command and control instructs the launch of an interceptor missile

4. The interceptor missile is fired at the enemy projectile

5. The enemy projectile is destroyed in the terminal phase of flight

The launcher trucks can hold up to eight interceptor missiles.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-37241649
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See also:

North Korean Submarine Missile Launch Shows Improved Ability
Aug 24, 2016 — A ballistic missile fired from a North Korean submarine on Wednesday flew about 500 kilometers (310 miles), the longest distance achieved by the North for such a weapon, Seoul officials said, putting all of South Korea, and possibly parts of Japan, within its striking distance.

North Korea already has a variety of land-based missiles that can hit South Korea and Japan, including U.S. military bases in those countries. But its development of reliable submarine-launched missiles would add weapons that are harder to detect before liftoff. South Korea's military condemned the launch as an "armed protest" by North Korea against the start of annual South Korean-U.S. military drills, but acknowledged it was an improvement over previous tests of similar missiles. "North Korea's nuclear and missile threats are not imaginary threats any longer, but they're now becoming real threats," South Korean President Park Geun-hye said of the launch. "Those threats are coming closer each moment." The missile, fired from a submarine off the eastern North Korean coastal town of Sinpo, reached into Japan's air defense identification zone, according to Seoul and Tokyo officials. The U.S. Strategic Command said it tracked the launch of the presumed KN-11 missile into the Sea of Japan. Its 500-kilometer (310-mile) flight puts all of South Korea within its range if it is fired near the two countries' border.

Missiles of such capability could also potentially strike parts of Japan, including U.S. military bases on the island of Okinawa, considering the operational range of North Korea's Sinpo-class submarines, which can move about 1,000 kilometers (620 miles) underwater at a time, said analyst Kim Dong-yub at Seoul's Institute for Far Eastern Studies. North Korea fired two missiles from submarines earlier this year, but South Korean defense officials believe they exploded in midair after flying less than 30 kilometers (18 miles). The launch was the latest in a series of missile, rocket and other weapon tests this year by North Korea, which is pushing to acquire reliable weapons that are capable of striking targets as far away as the continental United States. In June, North Korea, after a string of failures, sent a midrange ballistic missile more than 1,400 kilometers (870 miles) high. Analysts say the flight showed North Korea has made progress in its push to be able to strike U.S. forces throughout the region.

Many outside experts say North Korea doesn't yet have a functioning long-range nuclear missile capable of reaching the continental U.S., but they acknowledge that the North has been making steady progress in its weapons programs and could one day develop such a weapon. Some civilian experts have said they believe the North already has the technology to put warheads on shorter-range missiles that could strike South Korea and Japan. Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe called the launch an "impermissible and outrageous act" that poses a grave threat to Japan. The U.S. Strategic Command statement said the launch did not pose a threat to North America, but the U.S. military "remains vigilant in the face of North Korean provocations." The U.S. said it and Japan have requested an emergency meeting of the U.N. Security Council to discuss the missile launch.

MORE
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Related:

North Korea Missile Threat Grows Under Kim Jong Un: General
Aug 25, 2016 | The commander of Army forces in the Pacific said Wednesday that North Korea's 300-mile launch of a missile from a submarine was more evidence of the drastically increased missile threat under the latest Kim family dictator, Kim Jong Un.

North Korea has launched 31 missiles in the four years since Kim succeeded his late father, Kim Jong Il, compared to the nine missile launches in 17 years of the elder Kim's rule, said Army Gen. Robert B. Brown, commander of U.S. Army Pacific. "That tells you a lot about North Korea's intentions," Brown told Pentagon reporters by phone from his headquarters at Fort Shafter in Hawaii. "I am very worried, as you look at the trend. " The message for the Army was that "we'd better be prepared should North Korea do something stupid," Brown said. U.S. Strategic Command reported earlier Wednesday that the launch of a suspected KN-11 missile from a submarine was detected off Sinpo on North Korea's east coast.

The missile flew over the Sea of Japan toward Japan and fell into the sea about 300 miles off the coast of North Korea. The North American Aerospace Defense Command determined that the missile launch did not threaten the United States, StratCom said. The submarine launch appeared to mark a major advance in North Korea's technology and methods for potential attack, and also brought about a rare moment of agreement among Japan, South Korea and China. The foreign ministers of all three countries, which have been at odds over China's territorial claims in the South China Sea, condemned the North Korean missile launch. The missile launch came amid an escalating series of threats from Pyongyang against annual military exercises near the Demilitarized Zone by South Korea and the U.S. The Korean Central News Agency, the official North Korean outlet, has carried official statements calling the exercises a prelude to invasion and warning of a pre-emptive nuclear strike. North Korean troops also have reportedly been planting land mines in the DMZ.

A man walks by a TV screen showing the North Korean leader Kim Jong Un at the Seoul Train Station in Seoul, South Korea

Brown said USARPAC was better configured to respond to a crisis on the Korean Peninsula since the "Pacific Pathways" program to boost the Army's role in the region was inaugurated in 2014 as part of the rebalance of forces to the Pacific. Under Pacific Pathways, more Army troops have been forward deployed to respond to threats and humanitarian crises and the command now consists of about 100,000 troops, compared to 70,000 when Pacific Pathways began, Brown said.

MORE
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Steady Pie · Sep 5, 2016

dongsoola said: ↑

I know what many people are thinking.

You guys gonna say North Korea started this first by threatening with hydrogen bomb and firing ICBM missiles.

But the truth is that North Korea just tested hydrogen bomb in the underground facility in their own land. The truth is that North Korea fired satellite delivery rockets from their land according to international regulation.

Its US and South Korea who interprets this as serious provocation.

Did you notice US and South Korea always refer to North Korean rocket as "missile" rather than "satellite delivery rocket" ?

They do that on purpose that they want you to think North Korea is threatening.

Anyway, they used that opportunity to raise tension in Korea by doing stepped up joint military exercise that mobilized 690,000 troops and all these high tech weapons.

They closed down KaeSung complex which was the last hope of Korean unification.

Then they actually practiced landing on North Korean shores to invade.

So now North Korea started openly testing military rocket, missiles.
North Korea tested re-entry head part of missile which is a vital technology for ICBM.

Then South Korea/US introduced something with savage name called "beheading operation" which sounds like ISIS whose purpose is to eliminate North Korea leader.

All this is just because North Korea experimented with hydrogen bomb on their land that US frequently does. All this is just because North Korea have fired satellite delivery rockets that was carried out by countries in the world over 6500 times.

Please dont be one of the zombies who believe North Korea started all this.
Its all started by South Korea and US.
Click to expand...

I will permit North Korea the following. No more, no less.

-Non-intervention in their affairs.
-Unilateral free trade, mutual if you so desire.
-An end to all sanctions
-Recognition of NK's right to nuclear energy and weaponry.
-Non-intervention in the case of an invasion of SK.
-Complete and unmerciful destruction if you Invade Australia.

Pax Aeon · Sep 5, 2016

`
`
OP, with all due respect, your monologue has got to be the worst rationalization and justification of an inhuman rouge state I have ever read here. The world, even China and Russia to a certain extent, are united in their insistence that North Korea change its ways. So long as it keeps making military threats, it becomes a legitimate and dangerous entity.

waltky · Sep 10, 2016

Why is North Korea testing nuclear weapons?...

North Korea's Nuclear Threat Growing after Largest Test
Sep 10, 2016 | North Korea's nuclear threat has grown significantly, following its latest and largest nuclear test and a series of missile launches, analysts say, with some South Korean newspapers even speculating about an atomic attack on Seoul.

The South Korean capital stayed calm Saturday, with residents immune to near-daily threats from their neighbor, but newspapers and analysts saw Friday's test as a game-changer. With a force of 10 kilotons, the blast was two-thirds the size of the atomic bomb that destroyed Hiroshima in August 1945. It took place just eight months after the previous detonation. More importantly, the North claimed it had successfully tested a nuclear warhead that could be mounted on a missile. The nuclear program has been accompanied by a series of ballistic missile launches, including from a submarine.

North Korea's dictator, Kim Jong-Un with a few of his military advisers.

Given that Friday's test was the most powerful in terms of yield and that the time lapse from the previous test was shortened, "the North's nuclear capability is believed to have been sophisticated to a considerable degree and being developed at an increasingly faster pace," South Korean Foreign Minister Yun Byung-Se told senior ministry officials. The world must now "cautiously accept the reality" that the North could launch a nuclear attack by missile, said analyst Jeung Young-Tae of the Korea Institute for National Unification (KINU), although the range of such a nuclear-tipped missile remained unclear.

The North's announcement of its test indicated they had tested the bomb that would arm their missile units, said Jeffrey Lewis, director of the East Asia Nonproliferation Program at Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterrey. "And that's a big deal," he wrote in an article entitled "North Korea's nuke program is way more sophisticated than you think", for the website of Foreign Policy magazine. "In the past, we've treated North Korean nuclear tests as temper tantrums or political demonstrations."

- 'Not completely insane' -
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See also:

North Korea's Largest Nuclear Test Draws Global Condemnation
9/09/2016 - The blast, on the 68th anniversary of North Korea’s founding, was more powerful than the bomb dropped on Hiroshima, according to some estimates.

North Korea conducted its fifth and biggest nuclear test on Friday and said it had mastered the ability to mount a warhead on a ballistic missile, ratcheting up a threat that its rivals and the United Nations have been powerless to contain. The blast, on the 68th anniversary of North Korea’s founding, was more powerful than the bomb dropped on Hiroshima, according to some estimates, and drew condemnation from the United States as well as China, Pyongyang’s main ally. Diplomats said the United Nations Security Council would discuss the test at a closed-door meeting on Friday, at the request of the United States, Japan and South Korea. Under 32-year-old dictator Kim Jong Un, North Korea has accelerated the development of its nuclear and missile programs, despite U.N. sanctions that were tightened in March and have further isolated the impoverished country.

South Korean President Park Geun-hye, in Laos after a summit of Asian leaders, said Kim was showing “maniacal recklessness” in completely ignoring the world’s call to abandon his pursuit of nuclear weapons. U.S. President Barack Obama, aboard Air Force One on his way home from Laos, said the test would be met with “serious consequences,” and held talks with Park and with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, the White House said. China said it was resolutely opposed to the test and urged Pyongyang to stop taking any actions that would worsen the situation. It said it would lodge a protest with the North Korean embassy in Beijing. There were further robust condemnations from Russia, the European Union, NATO, Germany and Britain.

North Korea, which labels the South and the United States as its main enemies, said its “scientists and technicians carried out a nuclear explosion test for the judgment of the power of a nuclear warhead,” according to its official KCNA news agency. It said the test proved North Korea was capable of mounting a nuclear warhead on a medium-range ballistic missile, which it last tested on Monday when Obama and other world leaders were gathered in China for a G20 summit. Pyongyang’s claims of being able to miniaturize a nuclear warhead have never been independently verified.

Its continued testing in defiance of sanctions presents a challenge to Obama in the final months of his presidency and could become a factor in the U.S. presidential election in November, and a headache to be inherited by whoever wins. “Sanctions have already been imposed on almost everything possible, so the policy is at an impasse,” said Tadashi Kimiya, a University of Tokyo professor specializing in Korean issues. “In reality, the means by which the United States, South Korea and Japan can put pressure on North Korea have reached their limits,” he said.

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North Korea nuclear test: Is it important?
Fri, 09 Sep 2016 - North Korea has carried out another nuclear test. It is the country's fifth and sparked global indignation. Why is it important?

North Korea has carried out what appears to be its largest ever nuclear test, sparking global indignation. This is the country's fifth test. Why are the North Koreans doing it, and why is it important?

Why now?

Well, there have been some reasons given by the North Koreans themselves - and then there are some that need to be read between the lines:

* Officially, it was a demonstration of the "toughest will" of the Korean people to show they can retaliate to an attack by enemies. It was also a show against the "racket of threat and sanctions" that the nation has suffered at the hands of the global community via the UN

* Then came the technical reasons - to hone the ability to put nuclear warheads on ballistic missiles (although many experts still doubt this has been effectively achieved)

* And finally it was a show of national "dignity", an important concept in North Korea backed up by the fact it came on National Day, a traditional time to show off military muscle

Unstated, but clearly obvious, was anger at US and South Korean plans to install an anti-missile defence system in the South, along with the traditional lambasting of the annual US-South Korea joint military exercises.

Why does it matter?

North Korea is an isolated communist nation run by an unpredictable 32-year-old "supreme leader" with his hands on an unspecified nuclear arsenal and seemingly immune to any global pressure to give it up. Kim Jong-un's aggression and invective show no sign of abating. If anything they are getting worse. The North's southern neighbour- still technically at war with the North because the 1950-53 conflict ended in an armistice, not a treaty - and Japan are particularly nervous.

The North has also often stated its aim of targeting the US.
What next?

The US and Russia have already indicated that there will be more discussions at the UN. A resolution of condemnation is one course of action, given that no nation on the Security Council is likely to block it. There have already been five sets of UN sanctions and more may well be on the agenda, such as blocking the export of fuel oil to North Korea, but how effective they would be is unclear. China's response will be the most important. It has to balance opposition to the North's nuclear actions with a desire not to destabilise its volatile neighbour.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-37319008
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waltky · Sep 12, 2016

Fatboy laughin' at Obama...

Obama Warns of ‘Serious Consequences’ After N. Korea, Again, Tests a Nuclear Weapon
September 9, 2016 – President Obama warned that North Korea would face “serious consequences” after conducting a nuclear test early Friday – the latest in a series of provocative actions this year including a previous nuclear test eight months ago and multiple ballistic missile launches since.

White House press secretary Josh Earnest said Obama had spoken to South Korean and Japanese leaders by phone, and “reiterated the unbreakable U.S. commitment to the security of our allies in Asia and around the world.” “The president indicated he would continue to consult our allies and partners in the days ahead to ensure provocative actions from North Korea are met with serious consequences,” he added. Obama has just returned from a trip to Asia, where he was attending a G20 summit in China when North Korea fired three ballistic missiles into the sea between the Korean peninsula and Japan.

Friday’s test is the fifth carried out by the regime in Pyongyang in defiance of the international community. It said in an announcement on state television that North Korea has now developed nuclear warheads boasting “higher strike power,” while improving its ability to mount them onto ballistic missiles. “This is our response to hostile powers, including the U.S.,” it said. “We sent out a message that if the enemies attack us, we can counterattack." The previous four nuclear tests was conducted in 2006, 2009, 2013 and January 6 this year. Last January’s test brought a response in the form of a U.N. Security Council sanctions resolution adopted two months later. The Kim Jong-un regime has showed no sign of changing direction or tamping down its belligerent rhetoric since then, however.

On the contrary, it has carried out a number of ballistic missile launches over the ensuing months, prompting a series of condemnatory Security Council press statements, often merely replicating much of the language of earlier ones. The Security Council was to hold an emergency session Friday to discuss the latest test, at the request of the U.S., Japan and South Korea. Earlier, the South Korean and Japanese governments called crisis national security meetings to discuss the situation, after a magnitude 5.3 seismic event was detected at the location of the Pyunggye-ri nuclear test site in north eastern North Korea. International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) director-general Yukiya Amano expressed frustration at Pyongyang’s repeated provocations.

If confirmed, he said, the fifth test would be “in clear violation of numerous U.N. Security Council resolutions and in complete disregard of the repeated demands of the international community. It is a deeply troubling and regrettable act.” The Security Council resolution adopted last month demanded that North Korea comply immediately with the council's earlier decisions that it “shall not conduct any further launches that use ballistic missile technology, nuclear tests, or any other provocation, and shall suspend all activities related to its ballistic missile program.”

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North Korea says sanctions push after nuclear test 'laughable'
11 Sep 2016: North Korea said on Sunday a push for further sanctions following its fifth and biggest nuclear test was "laughable", and vowed to continue to strengthen its nuclear power.

The isolated state on Friday set off its most powerful nuclear explosion to date, saying it had mastered the ability to mount a warhead on a ballistic missile, ratcheting up a threat that its rivals and the United Nations have been powerless to contain. A U.S. special envoy met with Japanese officials on Sunday and said later the United States may launch unilateral sanctions against North Korea, echoing comments by U.S. President Barack Obama on Friday in the wake of the test. "The group of Obama's running around and talking about meaningless sanctions until today is highly laughable, when their 'strategic patience' policy is completely worn out and they are close to packing up to move out," state-run KCNA news agency cited a North Korean foreign ministry spokesman as saying in a statement later on Sunday. "As we've made clear, measures to strengthen the national nuclear power in quality and quantity will continue to protect our dignity and right to live from augmented threats of nuclear war from the United States," KCNA added.

Earlier, the South's Yonhap news agency reported South Korea's military had a plan to use its missiles to "decimate" areas of Pyongyang if there were signs the North was about to launch a nuclear attack, quoting a source in the military. The South's Defence Ministry could not immediately confirm the report, but the military has vowed to take strong actions to retaliate in the event of an attack by the North. The North has yet to demonstrate that it had deployed nuclear-capable missiles, despite claims to have mastered the technology to miniaturise a nuclear warhead to mount it on ballistic missiles.

NORTH KOREANS "DELIGHTED"

The U.N. Security Council denounced North Korea's decision to carry out the test and said it would begin work immediately on a resolution. The United States, Britain and France pushed for the 15-member body to impose new sanctions. Obama said after speaking by telephone with South Korean President Park Geun-hye and with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Friday that they had agreed to work with the Security Council and other powers to vigorously enforce existing measures and to take "additional significant steps, including new sanctions". "We will be working very closely in the Security Council and beyond to come up with the strongest possible measure against North Korea's latest actions," said U.S. envoy Sung Kim on Sunday. "In addition to action in the Security Council, both the U.S. and Japan, together with the Republic of Korea, will be looking at unilateral measures, as well as bilateral measures, as well as possible trilateral cooperation," he said, referring to South Korea by its official name.

South Korea's top nuclear envoy also spoke to his Chinese counterpart late on Saturday by telephone and emphasized the need for fresh countermeasures including a new U.N. security council resolution during their call, the South Korean foreign ministry said in a statement. South Korea said on Saturday that the latest test showed North Korea's nuclear capability was expanding fast and that North Korean leader Kim Jong Un was unwilling to alter course. Another KCNA report on Sunday said North Koreans were "delighted" by the nuclear test. "The enemies can no longer deny the strategic position of our country as a nuclear weapons state," Jong Won Sop, a teacher at the University of National Economy, was quoted as saying.

http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news...ush-after-nuclear-test-laughable/3118052.html
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Few Expect China to Punish North Korea for Latest Nuclear Test
SEPT. 11, 2016 — North Korea’s biggest nuclear test, conducted last week less than 50 miles from the Chinese border, sent tremors through homes and schools in China’s northeast. But hours later, there was no mention of the test on China’s state-run evening television news, watched by hundreds of millions of viewers.

The decision on Friday to publicly ignore stark evidence of Pyongyang’s expanding nuclear capabilities illustrated the embarrassment that North Korea’s leader, Kim Jong-un, poses for his patrons in Beijing. But although North Korea remains nearly 100 percent dependent on China for oil and food, Chinese analysts say Beijing will not modify its allegiance to North Korea or pressure the country to curtail its drive for a full-fledged nuclear arsenal, as the United States keeps requesting. “The United States cannot rely on China for North Korea,” said Shi Yinhong, a professor of international relations at Renmin University in Beijing. “China is closer to North Korea than the United States.”

China sees living with a Communist-ruled nuclear-armed state on its border as preferable to the chaos of its collapse, Mr. Shi said. The Chinese leadership is confident that North Korea will not turn its weapons on China, and that China can control its neighbor by providing enough oil to keep its economy afloat. The alternative is a strategic nightmare for Beijing: a collapsed North Korean regime, millions of refugees piling into China and a unified Korean Peninsula under an American defense treaty. The Obama administration’s decision to deploy an advanced missile defense system in South Korea also gives President Xi Jinping of China less incentive to cooperate with Washington on a North Korea strategy that could aim, for example, to freeze the North’s nuclear capacity, the analysts said.
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The American-supplied missile defenses in South Korea, known as the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense system, or Thaad, have effectively killed any chance of China’s cooperating with the United States, they said. “China is strongly opposed to North Korea’s nuclear weapons but at the same time opposes the defense system in South Korea,” said Cheng Xiaohe, an assistant professor of international relations at Renmin University. It is not clear which situation the Chinese leadership is more agitated about, he said. Beijing interprets the Thaad deployment as another American effort to contain China. The system reinforces China’s view that its alliance with North Korea is an integral part of China’s strategic interests in Asia, with America’s treaty allies Japan and South Korea and tens of thousands of American troops close by, Mr. Shi said.

Washington insists that the Thaad system, due to be installed in 2017, is intended to defend South Korea against North Korean missiles, and is not aimed at China. The system “does not change the strategic balance between the United States and China,” President Obama said after meeting with Mr. Xi in Hangzhou, China, a week ago. But China is not persuaded. Chinese officials argue that the Thaad radar can detect Chinese missiles on the mainland, undermining its nuclear deterrent. So despite what Chinese analysts describe as the government’s distaste for Mr. Kim and his unpredictable behavior, China’s basic calculus on North Korea remains firm.

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spiritgide · Sep 12, 2016

dongsoola said: ↑

I know what many people are thinking.

You guys gonna say North Korea started this first by threatening with hydrogen bomb and firing ICBM missiles.

But the truth is that North Korea just tested hydrogen bomb in the underground facility in their own land. The truth is that North Korea fired satellite delivery rockets from their land according to international regulation.

Its US and South Korea who interprets this as serious provocation.

Did you notice US and South Korea always refer to North Korean rocket as "missile" rather than "satellite delivery rocket" ?

They do that on purpose that they want you to think North Korea is threatening.

Anyway, they used that opportunity to raise tension in Korea by doing stepped up joint military exercise that mobilized 690,000 troops and all these high tech weapons.

They closed down KaeSung complex which was the last hope of Korean unification.

Then they actually practiced landing on North Korean shores to invade.

So now North Korea started openly testing military rocket, missiles.
North Korea tested re-entry head part of missile which is a vital technology for ICBM.

Then South Korea/US introduced something with savage name called "beheading operation" which sounds like ISIS whose purpose is to eliminate North Korea leader.

All this is just because North Korea experimented with hydrogen bomb on their land that US frequently does. All this is just because North Korea have fired satellite delivery rockets that was carried out by countries in the world over 6500 times.

Please dont be one of the zombies who believe North Korea started all this.
Its all started by South Korea and US.
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If we are to believe even a small fragment of the news and personal reports of what happens in North Korea, you look somewhat like a blind man trying to ride a dead horse.

The Korean war, which is legally only on hold, started when Kim Il-sung's North Korean army, armed with Soviet tanks, quickly overran South Korea and the United States came to South Korea's aid. I guess you missed history class the day they covered that.

waltky · Sep 13, 2016

Fatboy mockin' Obama...

North Koreas LOL moment: Calls Obama foolish, laughs off sanctions after terrifying the world with its biggest nuclear test
Monday 12th September, 2016 - Mocking Americas reaction to its fifth and biggest nuclear test so far - North Korea has said that the push for sanctions by U.S. is highly laughable.

North Korea's foreign ministry was quoted as saying on the state news agency, KCNA, The group of Obamas running around and talking about meaningless sanctions until today is highly laughable, when their strategic patience policy is completely worn out and they are close to packing up to move out. The statement further added, As weve made clear, measures to strengthen the national nuclear power in quality and quantity will continue to protect our dignity and right to live from augmented threats of nuclear war from the United States. It added, The nuclear warhead explosion was a demonstration of our toughest will, showing that we are ready to counter-attack enemies if they make a provocation. It was a part of substantial counter-measures to the threat of a nuclear war and a sanctions racket led by hostile forces, including the U.S.

North Korea further defended its potent nuclear program with the elusive nations Foreign Ministry spokesperson saying in a televised statement that the U.S. had compelled the country to develop nuclear arms. He reportedly said, Its nuclear threat and blackmail constantly imposed on our country...were the engine that pushed us to reach this point. Further mocking U.S. President Barack Obama for his condemnation of the country's recent nuclear test, the ministry labelled Obama foolish for ignoring North Korea's "strategic position as a legitimate nuclear power state. The spokesperson added, Obama is trying hard to deny the DPRK's (North Korea's) strategic position as a legitimate nuclear weapons state but it is as foolish an act as trying to eclipse the sun with a palm.

In reaction to the nuclear test - which reports pointed out packed 80 percent of the explosive power compared to the atomic bomb that was dropped on Hiroshima - Obama has said that the test was a grave threat to regional security and to international peace and stability. The UN too had immediately jumped into action, initiating work on new measures, even though North Korea already has five sets of UN sanction imposed since its first nuclear test in 2006. Alongside U.S., even Britain and France have pushed the body to impose new sanctions against North Korea. The sanctions have however failed to turn North Koreas nuclear ambitions.

Obama was reported to have held a telephonic conversation with South Korean president Park Geun-hye and Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe post the launch and had said, that the nations would work with the Security Council and other nations to vigorously enforce existing measures and to take additional significant steps, including new sanctions. On Saturday, South Koreas top nuclear envoy was reported to have spoken to his Chinese counterpart emphasising the need for fresh countermeasures. Further, on Sunday, a U.S. special envoy is said to have met Japanese officials and later stated that the U.S. might launch unilateral sanctions against North Korea. Meanwhile, South Korean military is said to have issued a stern statement warning Pyongyang claiming that it would decimate the nation if North launches an attack against South Korea.

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More North Korea sanctions not the solution, China says
Sept. 12, 2016 - Beijings foreign ministry defended its Korea policy on Monday.

Heavier sanctions against North Korea are not the solution to reducing tensions after Pyongyang's fifth nuclear test, China said Monday. Beijing foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying told reporters sanctions against North Korea are a unilateral measure that could drive an already difficult situation to a dead end, South Korean news service Newsis reported. Hua also said the core of the North Korea nuclear issue is United States policy. China has dedicated a great deal of effort toward maintaining peace and stability on the Korean peninsula, the spokeswoman said.

Hua's comments come as the United Nations Security Council is planning to pass additional embargoes against Pyongyang after what appears to be its fifth nuclear test on Friday. China and Russia, traditional North Korea allies, are permanent members of the Security Council. While both countries condemned the test, neither Beijing nor Moscow approve of the call for heightened military deterrence in South Korea.

The Russian foreign ministry stated on Monday Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi agreed during a phone conversation that all countries should refrain from the further escalation of tensions, South Korean news agency Yonhap reported. "While the two ministers condemned North Korean actions, all countries concerned should abstain from measures that could lead to further heightened tensions, and instead solve the Korean peninsula nuclear issue through diplomacy," the Russian statement read.

China continues to be opposed to the deployment of a U.S. missile defense system in South Korea and the July decision to place THAAD on the peninsula has provided Beijing less incentive to work with Washington on a North Korea strategy, according to analysts who spoke to The New York Times. As new actions are expected at the U.N., North Korean Foreign Minister Ri Yong Ho left Pyongyang to attend the United Nations General Assembly, Yonhap reported Monday. Ri was seen at the main airport in Beijing quickly stepping into a vehicle that belonged to the North Korean Embassy, according to the report. But Ri is not expected to meet with senor Chinese officials, sources tell Yonhap.

http://www.upi.com/Top_News/World-N...ution-China-says/8251473685582/?spt=sec&or=tn
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waltky · Sep 14, 2016

Chinese patience wearin' thin with Fatboy Kim...

Analyst: North Korea has enough material to make 20 nuclear bombs
Sept. 13, 2016 -- North Korea may be adding seven nuclear bombs to its arsenal annually and could have about 20 bombs by the end of 2016, according to a U.S. analyst.

Siegfried S. Hecker, a nuclear weapons expert at Stanford University who has visited North Korea's nuclear facilities as recently as 2010, states on 38 North, a Johns Hopkins University website dedicated to North Korea, that Pyongyang could add 330 pounds of highly enriched uranium to an existing stockpile of about 660 to 880 pounds. That amount, 330 pounds, is sufficient to produce six nuclear bombs, according to Hecker. While North Korea's highly enriched uranium program is growing, the country's capacity to produce plutonium "remains limited" to 13 pounds per year.

North Korea has about 70 to 120 pounds of plutonium that is worth six to eight bombs, the analyst writes, adding plutonium production is easier to track because of "telltale signals." Hecker also states that while North Korea has claimed it can produce lighter smaller warheads, its "ability to field an [intercontinental ballistic missile] is still a long way off perhaps 5 to 10 years." North Korea's universally condemned fifth nuclear test is raising concerns the country could conduct at least another test before the end of 2016.

Jin Xiangdong, a Chinese researcher at Xiamen University, told Sputnik News North Korea could soon launch a sixth nuclear test. Pyongyang could test another nuclear weapon after the United Nations Security Council passes additional sanctions or during joint U.S.-South Korea military exercises that are to be held in mid-October, Jin said. A more powerful nuclear test, however, could have unintended consequences, according to earth sciences experts in South Korea.

Data from South Korean scientists submitted to a parliamentary committee on safety administration indicated another man-made earthquake near the Punggye-ri test site could trigger a dormant volcanic mountain, Mount Paektu, local newspaper Maeil Business reported. Paektu, the official birthplace of former leader Kim Jong Il, is about 75 miles from the nuclear test site. Another earthquake with a 3.0-7.0 magnitude could trigger a volcanic eruption, according to the analysis.

http://www.upi.com/Top_N8ews/World-...20-nuclear-bombs/1301473780680/?spt=sec&or=tn
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Chinese foreign minister: U.N. North Korea measures 'necessary'
Sept. 14, 2016 -- The Chinese foreign minister said he welcomes additional United Nations Security Council measures against North Korea as "necessary."

But Wang Yi also called for calm and restraint on the Korean peninsula, Beijing's foreign ministry said on Wednesday. The statement comes after Wang exchanged views by phone with his South Korean counterpart Yun Byung-se, Yonhap news agency reported. "With regards to North Korea's nuclear test, I am in favor of the necessary response from the United Nations but at the same time request the countries concerned exercise calm and restraint so as to not further heighten tensions," Wang said in his statement.

The foreign minister did not explicitly mention sanctions, which Beijing has been implementing since March while making some allowances for North Korean iron ore imports. Wang also reiterated Chinese opposition to THAAD deployment to the South Korean foreign minister, according to Beijing. China has raised concerns about the U.S. missile defense system and has blamed the United States for pressuring China to take responsibility for North Korean belligerence.

The Communist Party's newspaper People's Daily criticized the United States on Wednesday, stating Washington is neither a third party nor a judge in the North Korea nuclear issue. The United States must take responsibility for the developments on the Korean peninsula, the newspaper stated.

The United States, South Korea and Japan support heavier sanctions against North Korea, and U.S. State Secretary John Kerry is to meet with his Japanese and South Korean counterparts to discuss responses in the wake of North Korea's fifth nuclear test. The meeting, to be held on Sunday in New York, is to focus on pressures against North Korea, stronger sanctions and unilateral sanctions, according to Seoul's foreign ministry.

http://www.upi.com/Top_News/World-N...easures-necessary/6231473858680/?spt=slh&or=2
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waltky · Sep 16, 2016

Fatboy Kim tryin' to blow up the world...

North Korea Tests a Mightier Nuclear Bomb, Raising Tension
Sep 8, 2016 — North Korea conducted its fifth underground nuclear test on Friday, its government said, despite threats of more sanctions from the United States and the United Nations. The latest test, according to South Korean officials, produced a more powerful explosive yield than the North’s previous detonations, indicating that the country was making progress in its efforts to build a functional nuclear warhead.

The test confirmed the explosive power and other characteristics of a “nuclear warhead that has been standardized to be able to be mounted on” its ballistic missiles, the North’s nuclear weapons institute said in a statement on Friday. A statement from the South Korean military also said that an artificial tremor, registered as magnitude 5, had originated from Punggye-ri in northeastern North Korea, where the North has conducted its four previous underground nuclear tests. A senior official at the Defense Ministry later told reporters that it had concluded that a nuclear detonation had caused the tremor.

The ministry estimated the explosive yield was equivalent to 10 kilotons of TNT, the most powerful detonation unleashed in a North Korean nuclear test so far, according to the official, who briefed reporters on the condition of anonymity. The South’s government estimated the North’s last nuclear test, conducted in January, at 4.8 magnitude with an explosive yield of six to nine kilotons. (By comparison, the atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima in 1945 exploded with 15 kilotons of energy.) North Korea’s first nuclear detonation, conducted in 2006, was largely dismissed as a fizzle, registering only as a 3.9 magnitude tremor with about one kiloton of energy. But its nuclear devices have steadily improved, producing bigger explosions with stronger seismic tremors in subsequent tests.

At the same time, the North has launched a series of ballistic missiles with growing ranges that it said were intended to carry nuclear warheads, though doubts persisted that the country had mastered the technology needed to produce a nuclear warhead small and sturdy enough to travel a long distance through Earth’s atmosphere. On Friday, North Korea reported a major advance in its efforts. “The standardization of the nuclear warhead will enable the D.P.R.K. to produce at will and as many as it wants a variety of smaller, lighter and diversified nuclear warheads of higher strike power,” it said in a statement on Friday, using the initials of the country’s official name, Democratic People’s Republic of Korea. “This has definitely put on a higher level the D.P.R.K.’s technology of mounting nuclear warheads on ballistic missiles.”

Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-ahn of South Korea called an emergency meeting of top security officials, while his boss, President Park Geun-hye, cut short a visit to Laos, the president’s office said. The episode unfolded less than a day after President Obama concluded the final Asian tour of his presidency and highlighted the conundrums that the North Korean threat presents to the United States and China, which have often been at odds over how to respond to the bellicose acts of the North’s leader, Kim Jong-un. In Washington, Ned Price, a National Security Council spokesman, said: “We are aware of seismic activity on the Korean Peninsula in the vicinity of a known North Korean nuclear test site. We are monitoring and continuing to assess the situation in close coordination with our regional partners.”

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World War Three fears as USA and China warn of 'serious consequences' after North Korea launch 'nuclear missile'
Sep 8, 2016 - The 5.3 magnitude quake occurred near North Korea's known nuclear test site and was detected on the surface, not underground

North Korea has sparked fears of a Third World War after launching a nuclear test that caused an earthquake. Superpowers America and China immediately condemned the rogue state after news was revealed it had conducted its FIFTH nuclear test. While America is traditionally the communist state's enemy, China has been its closest ally but the statements by the nations today sparked fears of a possible war. US President Barack Obama said any provocative actions by North Korea would have "serious consequences". Obama had been briefed on board Air Force One by National Security Adviser Susan Rice about reported seismic activity near North Korea's nuclear test site earlier on Friday, White House press secretary Josh Earnest said.

Obama reiterated the unbreakable US commitment to the security of its allies in Asia and around the world, Earnest China's Foreign Ministry said on Friday that it was resolutely opposed to North Korea's latest nuclear test and strongly urges North Korea to stop taking any actions that will worsen the situation. China will stick to its aim of denuclearising the Korean peninsula and uphold the six-party talks process to resolve the issue, the ministry added in a short statement. France has also condemned a nuclear test conducted by North Korea on Friday, hours after seismic monitors detected a blast near the secretive country's nuclear test site.

The 5.3 magnitude quake was detected near North Korea's known nuclear test site, where it detonated its fourth nuclear device in January. The seismic event occurred around 9.30am local time, according to the US Geological Survey . The tremor was detected on the surface with zero depth. Naturally occurring earthquakes strike below ground. Its epicenter was 11 miles east-northeast of Sungjibaegam, the USGS said. The China Earthquake Networks Center (CENC)also reported that the earthquake was due to a suspected explosion. North Korea later confirmed the blast was its fifth nuclear test.

France has also condemned a nuclear test conducted by North Korea on Friday, hours after seismic monitors detected a blast near the secretive country's nuclear test site. The 5.3 magnitude quake was detected near North Korea's known nuclear test site, where it detonated its fourth nuclear device in January. The seismic event occurred around 9.30am local time, according to the US Geological Survey . The tremor was detected on the surface with zero depth. Naturally occurring earthquakes strike below ground. Its epicenter was 11 miles east-northeast of Sungjibaegam, the USGS said.

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North Korea conducts fifth nuclear test, claims it has made warheads with ‘higher strike power’
Sep 9, 2016 — North Korea defiantly celebrated its fifth nuclear test Friday, claiming that it can now make warheads small enough to fit onto a missile and warning its "enemies" — specifically the United States — that it has the ability to counter any attack.

Although the North’s proclaimed advancements could not be verified — and Pyongyang has a track record of exaggeration — the test appeared to mark another step toward North Korea’s goal of putting a nuclear warhead on a weapon capable of reaching the mainland United States. Friday’s test — the North’s second this year — underscored the ability of Kim Jong Un’s regime to make progress on its nuclear and missile programs despite waves of international sanctions and isolation. “This is our response to hostile powers, including the United States. We are sending out a message that if the enemies attack us, we can counterattack," Ri Chun Hee, a veteran North Korean newsreader, said on state television. "We will continue taking measures to protect our dignity and our right to exist from the American threat." The test also appeared to be much bigger than North Korea's previous four detonations since its first in 2006.

The U.S. Geological Survey detected an artificial 5.3-magnitude earthquake near North Korea's nuclear test site at 9 a.m. local time on Friday, a national holiday marking the 68th anniversary of the formation of the communist regime by Kim Il Sung, the current leader’s grandfather. “This is clearly a nuclear test,” said Jeffrey Lewis, director of the East Asia nonproliferation program at the James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies in Monterey, Calif. He estimated the size at between 10 and 20 kilotons. The North’s last nuclear test, carried out in January, was about six kilotons.

The test happened just a few hours after President Obama's plane stopped in Japan to refuel on his way home from Laos, where he attended a summit of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). The president talked to South Korea's president, Park Geun-hye, who was still in Laos, and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, said White House press secretary Josh Earnest. In a White House statement Friday, Obama called the test “a grave threat” to regional and international security and noted Pyongyang’s claims to be developing nuclear warheads capable of hitting the United States and its allies. “The United States does not, and never will, accept North Korea as a nuclear state,” Obama said. “Far from achieving its stated national security and economic development goals, North Korea’s provocative and destabilizing actions have instead served to isolate and impoverish its people through its relentless pursuit of nuclear weapons and ballistic missile capabilities.” He said the latest test shows that North Korea “has no interest in being a responsible member of the international community.”

After consulting by phone with the South Korean and Japanese leaders, Obama said they would work with the U.N. Security Council and international community to impose “significant” penalties, including new sanctions. He also vowed to push ahead with deployment of a Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) battery in South Korea and pledged to provide “extended deterrence, guaranteed by the full spectrum of U.S. defense capabilities.” At a news conference Thursday in Laos, Obama dismissed China’s objections to the THAAD deployment, saying he told Chinese President Xi Jinping “that we cannot have a situation where we’re unable to defend either ourselves or our treaty allies against increasingly provocative behavior and escalating capabilities by the North Koreans.” Obama added: “And I indicated to him that if the THAAD bothered him, particularly since it has no purpose other than defensive and does not change the strategic balance between the United States and China, that they need to work with us more effectively to change Pyongyang’s behavior.”

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mbk734 · Sep 16, 2016

This calls for Team America!!
[video=youtube;U1mlCPMYtPk]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U1mlCPMYtPk[/video]

waltky · Sep 18, 2016

No. Korean mid-range missiles increase in accuracy...

North Korea's Rodong missiles have increased in strike accuracy, report says
Sept. 16, 2016 -- North Korea's mid-range Rodong missiles have increased in accuracy as Pyongyang has accelerated weapons development in recent months.

A South Korean government source told Yonhap on Friday that North Korea's launch of three Rodong missiles on Sept. 5 all showed the same results. The missiles traveled for 620 miles, landed in Japan's air defense identification zone, and all dropped within a radius that extended less than a mile, the source said. The circular error probability, the measure of a weapon system's precision, has decreased from previous estimates that ranged 2-2.5 miles.

With the kind of improved accuracy that was demonstrated by the recent launches, the Rodong missiles, when equipped with a miniaturized nuclear warhead, a chemical or biological weapon could cause "unimaginable" destruction, the source said. There is also some speculation in Seoul the three North Korean missiles launched in early September were fired using a continuous shooting mode. North Korea could deliver dozens if not hundreds of projectiles if it has mastered the technology, according to the report.

North Korea may have also used this method of continuous shooting when it fired shells across the Northern Limit Line in 2010. North Korea's missile and nuclear tests have jolted the region and have been widely condemned. Japan press previously reported Pyongyang launched the missiles to test out the missile defense systems of Japan, the United States and South Korea, and that North Korea launched multiple projectiles to make interception more difficult.

http://www.upi.com/Top_News/World-N...racy-report-says/1981474083188/?spt=sec&or=tn
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Japan, South Korea to discuss coordinated response on North Korea
Sept. 16, 2016 | High-level meetings are to take place as Tokyo and Seoul are in close talks about military intelligence sharing.

Top diplomats of South Korea and Japan are to meet in New York on Sunday to discuss a coordinated response to North Korea's nuclear provocations. The talks are being held at a time when both countries are revisiting a canceled intelligence-sharing agreement known as the Japan-Korea GSOMIA, South Korean newspaper Herald Business reported.

Seoul's foreign ministry said Friday that Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se is to hold the dialogue with his Japanese counterpart Fumio Kishida ahead of measures to be taken at the United Nations Security Council, including further sanctions against Pyongyang. Representatives to the six-party talks of both countries also exchanged a phone call regarding North Korea's fifth nuclear test, Seoul said, according to Yonhap. A South Korean think tank has recently suggested Seoul pursue military intelligence sharing with Japan.

The Japan-Korea GSOMIA was canceled in 2012 due to South Korean domestic opposition, but more South Korean experts are supporting the agreement in the wake of North Korea's multiple provocations. South Korean President Park Geun-hye and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe had exchanged views in Vientiane, Laos, on bilateral protection of shared intelligence a meeting that took place as relations between Seoul and Tokyo have improved in the wake of an agreement on the issue of comfort women.

Japanese Defense Minister Tomomi Inada had also requested an agreement on the bilateral protection of shared intelligence during a phone call to South Korea's Han Min-koo, according to the South Korean press report. But Han had said any agreement with Japan is to be made according to domestic consensus. In early September, a Japanese command to "destroy" incoming North Korea missiles repeatedly failed when North Korea launched three ballistic missiles that landed west of Hokkaido, prompting concerns in the country.

http://www.upi.com/Top_News/World-N...e-on-North-Korea/5461474046386/?spt=sec&or=tn
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dlat9664 · Sep 18, 2016

Hi Dongsoola. Your argument is childish. The world must be rid of nuclear weapons, and this is part of international law. It is illegal for any country to acquire nuclear weapons technology or test nuclear weapons. All existing nuclear weapon's states must be on the path to their elimination. The alternative is that every medium size country become nuclear armed, and the chance of nuclear warfare increases. For the same reasons, biological warfare and chemical warfare have also banned. regards, Daniel

waltky · Sep 19, 2016

China lashes out at US as North Korea nuclear test fuels tensions...

Simmering US-China rivalry prompts North Korea nuclear test finger-pointing
Tuesday, 13 Sep 2016 | China has lashed out at the U.S. after Washington accused Beijing of not doing enough to arrest North Korean's nuclear ambitions, underscoring tensions between the two world powers in the geopolitically sensitive Korean Peninsula.

At the Chinese foreign affairs ministry's regular press conference on Monday, spokesperson Hua Chunying said U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter was being "unnecessarily modest" for thrusting the responsibility of handling Pyongyang solely on China. "The cause and crux of the Korean nuclear issue rest with the U.S. rather than China," added Hua in an official transcript from the foreign affairs ministry. "The core of the issue is the conflict between (North Korea) and the U.S. It is the U.S. who should reflect upon how the situation has become what it is today, and search for an effective solution. It is better for the doer to undo what he has done. The U.S. should shoulder its due responsibilities," she said.

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un inspects a unit of the Korean People's Army

Hua was responding to Carter who singled out the East Asian giant at a news conference in Norway as bearing the responsibility for North Korea's recalcitrant nuclear testing. "It's China's responsibility," he said, according to Reuters. "China has and shares an important responsibility for this development and has an important responsibility to reverse it." "And so it's important that it (China) uses its location, its history and its influence to further the denuclearization of the Korean peninsula," he added. Meanwhile, North Korea through its state-run news agency KCNA also said U.S. was the "very one" compelling the isolated country to develop nuclear warheads. The U.S.' constant "nuclear threat and blackmail" in the past decades was "an engine which pushed the (North Korea) to reach this point," it said.

On Tuesday, two U.S. B-1 bombers flew over South Korea in a show of solidarity with South Korea while Sung Kim, the U.S. envoy on North Korea, said the world's largest economy remained open to a meaningful dialogue with Pyongyang, Reuters reported. Meanwhile, North Korea through its state-run news agency KCNA also said U.S. was the "very one" compelling the isolated country to develop nuclear warheads. The U.S.' constant "nuclear threat and blackmail" in the past decades was "an engine which pushed the (North Korea) to reach this point," it said. On Tuesday, two U.S. B-1 bombers flew over South Korea in a show of solidarity with South Korea while Sung Kim, the U.S. envoy on North Korea, said the world's largest economy remained open to a meaningful dialogue with Pyongyang, Reuters reported.

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Will North Korea's next missile test have a nuclear warhead?
Fri September 9, 2016 - North Korea claims a successful nuclear warhead test; Pyongyang recently tested missiles that could potentially carry a nuclear warhead

Could North Korea actually put a nuclear warhead atop a rocket and fire it at a potential adversary? Some still doubt North Korea can make a warhead small enough, or miniaturize it enough, to mount atop a missile. But that's what North Korea said it proved Friday. South Korean monitors said Friday's nuclear test had a yield equivalent to 10 kilotons of TNT, which would make it North Korea's most powerful of five tests to date. That blast came just days after North Korea test-fired three ballistic missiles, which landed in Japan's Air Defense Identification Zone, about 155 miles (250 kilometers) from a Japanese island. Last month, a missile fired from a submarine also landed in the same zone.

'A major concern for the region'

"They've been demonstrating not just the ability to cause a nuclear detonation, but to mount it and turn it into a weapon," said John Delury, an assistant professor of East Asian studies at Yonsei University in South Korea. "If there's evidence that they can do that -- or they have done that -- then this is a major concern for the region," Alexander Neill, a North Korea expert at the International Institute for Strategic Studies Asia, said. Friday's nuclear test was North Korea's second this year, something that shows North Korea is "mastering the technology," said Lassina Zerbo, executive secretary of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization. But analysts say there's no way to determine the extent of North Korea's missile technology until they actually use it.

Images published by North Korean state media purport to show a submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM) off the eastern coast of the Korean peninsula on Saturday, April 23, 2016. Five days later, South Korea claims the North launched two more missiles on April 28 that failed. On February 9, 2016 South Korea's Defense Ministry releases images of debris believed to be a part of North Korean rocket, which was launched on February 7. Pyongyang said it had successfully launched Earth observation satellite Kwangmyongsong-4 into orbit.

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Time to rethink after new North Korean nuke test
September 9, 2016 - How to handle yet another North Korean nuclear weapons test, the second this year and fifth overall? President Obama's approach, consistent with his "no drama Obama" nickname, has been to reduce the visibility of the issue and avoid rewarding Pyongyang with lots of attention and offers of better relations trying instead to persuade China, North Korea's only ally and most important economic partner, to tighten sanctions. This approach is not working very well.

To be sure, some added sanctions--and better sanctions enforcement--should, as always, be the first step here. That said, we can already predict what Beijing is most likely to do, based on history. Some moderate toughening of formal sanctions will happen, but many Chinese firms will avoid tough enforcement and the net effect will be very modest. As recent research by John Park and others at Harvard has shown, this has been the norm for years. But we also need to recognize reality: North Korea continues to test nuclear weapons no other country has done so this century and it may well keep it up. Even worse, as best we can tell, it continues to produce more fissile materials and thus quite likely more bombs. It remains demonstrably unfazed by Western sanctions and unafraid of Chinese retaliation. Perhaps North Korea will decide this latest test was successful enough that it should stop. But that may be wishful thinking, too.

We need a policy that is both more pragmatic, in terms of its immediate goals for changing North Koreas behavior, and more promising in its ability to gain greater Chinese cooperation for squeezing North Korea if there are further unacceptable actions taken in the future. How to do this? The United States and other countries should keep its same goal of North Korean denuclearization, the complete and verifiable elimination of its existing arsenal of perhaps 10 to 12 bombs (maybe more), as the only way for Pyongyang to gain a lifting of sanctions and greater economic aid in the future. But we also need a shorter-term and more pragmatic approach that would seek to freeze North Korea's progress. A new president could pursue this come January, after President Obama presumably first makes the effort to tighten sanctions as a necessary if unpromising first American and international response.

We cannot reward North Korea for its outlandish actions, or buy the same horse twice to quote those U.S. officials who argued in the past that North Korea violated previous denuclearization deals and then returned to the negotiating table, only to demand additional compensation. But we can offer incentives for North Korea to take certain actions that it has not yet been asked to undertake, along with restraint on the nuclear front, as part of a package deal. The interim goal of this policy to dissuade Pyongyang from any more nuclear testing and to persuade it to dismantle, verifiably, its nuclear infrastructure the reactor that produces plutonium and the centrifuges that produce enriched uranium. We know where the former is. We do not know where the latter is located, so some form of managed access would be needed to identify and visit these sites (perhaps involving Chinese, Russian or UN monitors, if American eyes are unwelcome).

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waltky · Sep 24, 2016

Granny says, "Dat's right - dey need to do sumpin' `bout Fatboy a-fore he blows uppa world...

North Korean Threat Changes Timelines for US Moves
Sep 24, 2016 | The increasing threat from North Korea means that decisions about moving U.S. forces away from the front lines, and transferring operational control to the South, must be driven by conditions -- not timelines -- the U.S. Eighth Army commander said.

Lt. Gen. Thomas Vandal said the much-delayed relocation of the bulk of U.S. forces in Korea to regional hubs south of Seoul is finally on track, with most major units expected to be in place by early 2018. But the 210th Field Artillery Brigade will remain near the heavily militarized border with North Korea for the foreseeable future. The Combined Forces Command and USFK headquarters also will maintain a residual force at the Yongsan U.S. Army Garrison in Seoul. "Right now, it's conditions-based moves," Vandal said in an interview Thursday with Stars and Stripes at his office at the military's headquarters in Yongsan. "That is because of the criticality of having the counter-fire capabilities to the north."

Vandal, who is also the chief of staff for USFK and the Combined Forces Command, said the artillery brigade and supporting forces will remain at Camp Casey at least until 2020, according to an agreement with the South Korean government. But the trigger for the move will rely on the ability of the South Korean military to fully take over the positions. That would include having and being able to operate a comparable multiple-launch rocket system capable of defending against the North's massive arsenal. Pyongyang has raised the stakes this year by conducting two nuclear tests and stepping up the pace of its missile launches as the Communist country marches toward its stated goal of developing an nuclear weapon that could reach the U.S. mainland.

A North Korean defector in the border town of Paju, South Korea, prepares to release a banner into the air on Sept. 15 that denounces North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.

The advances prompted South Korea to agree to allow the U.S. to deploy a high-altitude missile defense system known as THAAD. The military has missed many deadlines and been forced to scale back efforts to relocate most U.S. troops to regional hubs south of Seoul. It also has put on hold plans to transfer wartime operational control to South Korea, originally scheduled for 2012, then 2015. Under the current arrangement, the South is in charge of its own troops during peacetime, but U.S. commanders would take charge of all combined forces if war breaks out with North Korea.

Vandal said USFK has been working with South Korea's military to develop its core capabilities so it could be fully responsible for its own security. "I would anticipate sometime in 2025 time frame, but again we're not tied to a specific time; we're tied to the conditions," he said. He said the $10.7 billion program to expand Camp Humphreys to accommodate an eventual population of 42,000 is finally shifting from the construction phase to the move phase, pointing out that the Republic of Korea is covering 92 percent of the cost. He said the Eighth Army headquarters will be in place by next July and the 2nd Infantry Division by January 2018. The 6th Medical Brigade also will move next summer, he said.

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waltky · Oct 17, 2016

Granny says, "Dat's right - nuke `em first a-fore they nuke us...

North Korea Warns It Would Use Nuclear Weapons First If Threatened
Oct 17 2016 North Korea has warned that it may carry out further nuclear tests and says it is prepared to launch a preemptive strike on the United States if U.S. nuclear forces mobilize against it.

"The U.S. has nuclear weapons off our coast, targeting our country, our capital and our Dear Leader, Kim Jong Un," a top North Korean official, Lee Yong Pil, said in an exclusive interview with NBC News. "We will not step back as long as there's a nuclear threat to us from the United States," added Lee, who is director of the Foreign Ministry's Institute for American Studies. "A preemptive nuclear strike is not something the U.S. has a monopoly on," he said. "If we see that the U.S. would do it to us, we would do it first. ... We have the technology." Such threats have been a staple of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un since he took power after his father's death in 2011. U.S. officials do not believe Pyongyang possesses weapons able to reach the continental United States.

Lee also warned that North Korea may carry out "a sixth, a seventh or an eighth" nuclear test. Lee said his government's stance was being driven by "the increasingly aggressive" drills by the United States and the South. The comments came as Washington and Seoul conducted joint naval exercises off the Korean peninsula. The South Korean military told the country's Yonhap news agency that one of the drills scheduled to end later this month involved targeting the North's nuclear facilities. For its part, North Korea has accelerated its nuclear program, carrying out its fourth and fifth tests this year. The International Atomic Energy Agency called the moves "deeply troubling" and "regrettable."

Putting the world on notice of another nuclear test would anger the international community, most of which is already considering further sanctions against the reclusive nation for its activity so far. Lee said neither sanctions from the United Nations nor U.S. pressure would stop North Korea's building its arsenal. "We have to have nuclear weapons to protect our country, and it's our policy to go nuclear," he added. Another North Korean official told NBC News that the reclusive nation already has the capability to reach the U.S. mainland with a rocket. Hwang Yongnam, who is authorized to speak about the country's missile program, said the Pentagon is lying when it says the North cannot yet reach the continental United States with a weapon.

MORE http://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/north-korea-warns-it-would-use-nuclear-weapons-first-if-n665791
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Russia Is Building Fallout Shelters to Prepare for a Potential Nuclear Strike
10.17.16 - Russias preparing for war. Is this self-defense, an implied threat to the West, an excuse for political repression, or all of the above?

Managers of the Zenit Arena, a giant half-built stadium in St. Petersburg, received an official letter from the Ministry of Emergency Situations last week demanding that they immediately create shelter facilities for wartime. The stadium, under construction for the upcoming World Cup 2018, is located outside of the city boundaries, the letter said, but in case of nuclear attack it is in the potential zone of war destruction and radiation fallout. The last time Russians heard authorities talk like this about a potential mobilization for a nuclear strike was 20 years ago, and it all seemed highly improbable. Now, it appears, the Kremlin is not joking. Up to 40 million people participated in the recent civil defense exercises all across the country, learning about how to hide and where exactly to run to in case of a nuclear war.

But whether the motive behind this is self-defense, an implied threat to the West, a means to mobilize and control public opinion, or all of the above, is not entirely clear. These are the most serious tensions between Moscow and Washington in decades, said Sergei Markov, a member of the Civic Chamber, a Moscow-based state institution. The war might begin even before the November elections in the U.S. I personally plan to stock 200 cans of pork to be ready for a potential war crisis, Markov told The Daily Beast in an interview, and I advise everybody to do the same.

State Duma Deputy Vadim Dengin said he hoped that there would be no war with United States. I cannot understand why the West cannot just leave us in peace, let us be, the official said. Americans should realize that it will be their children looking for shelters, too, if they are serious about attacking Russia. On Thursday Vladimir Gladkov, a 19 year old student heard from a neighbor that the closest bomb shelter to his apartment building was Kitai Gorod metro station.

A thermonuclear bomb on Moscow?
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waltky · Dec 6, 2016

Granny says, "Dat's right - purt soon ever'body gonna be kung-fu fighting...

North Korea 'hacks South's military cyber command'
Tue, 06 Dec 2016 - A South Korean military unit set up to prevent hacking appears to have been breached by the North.

A spokesman told the BBC that classified information was thought to have been stolen, although it is not clear exactly what data was accessed. The North has previously been accused of hacking into banks and media outlets but never the South's military. Pyongyang has in the past rejected allegations of cyber crime involvement. "It seems the intranet server of the cyber command has been contaminated with malware. We found that some military documents, including confidential information, have been hacked," a military spokesman told South Korea's Yonhap news agency. It is not clear whether low-grade documents or more important details like war plans were accessed.

The military said that the compromised section of its network was isolated once the attack was detected. North Korea is believed to have thousands of personnel involved in cyberwarfare. Since 2010 they have been focusing on application programming interfaces (APIs), which can be designed to attack national infrastructures, North Korean defector and computer science professor Kim Heung-Kwang told the BBC. The North has a track record of alleged cyber attacks in recent years against South Korean government agencies, banks and media companies.

An apparent concerted campaign involving the planting of malicious code began in 2014, Reuters news agency quoted police as saying. It was aimed at laying the groundwork for an attack on a massive scale, the agency said. The campaign was discovered in February this year after defence-related material including blueprints for the wings of F-15 fighter jets was stolen. Some 140,000 computers at 160 companies were attacked up until this June, according to police.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-38219009
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North Korea cyberattack traced to city in China, report says
Dec. 5, 2016 - South Korea's defense intranet was the target of North Korea cyberattacks that originated from Shenyang, China, according to a military source who spoke to Yonhap.

A South Korean military source says it has identified the source of North Korea cyberattacks that targeted the internal networks of the military. The Internet Protocol address linked to the attacks was traced to a location in Shenyang, China, and a malicious code associated with the address was similar to the one used in North Korean cyberattacks against the South, Yonhap reported.

Seoul's military believes the evidence points to North Korean involvement in a hacking incident aimed at the army's intranet. "It is our understanding the internal network of the military was hacked from an IP address in Shenyang," a military source told Yonhap. "The malicious code used in the hacking is similar to the code used in several computer breaches." A separate 2014 cyberattack that infiltrated multiple servers at Korea Hydro and Nuclear Power was also linked to an IP address in Shenyang, according to the report.

South Korea's military has previously stated the internal defense network is safe from breaches because it is separated from the rest of the Internet. But the hacking could have occurred when users of the internal network accessed it through the Internet, giving hackers an opportunity to exploit a weak point, the military source said. The source added more information could not be provided to the press without posing risks to cybersecurity. In August North Korea hackers were linked to the targeting of numerous South Korean government agencies.

http://www.upi.com/Top_News/World-N...d-to-city-in-China-report-says/8601480990766/
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TrackerSam · Dec 6, 2016

Nightmare515 said: ↑

Tell N Korea to stop brainwashing it's own people, starving it's own people, putting it's own people in concentration camps to be starved, beaten, abused, raped, and worked to death, them and their children and their childrens children.

Tell them to act like part of the 21st century civilized world and maybe the US and S Korea will get their collective foot off N Korea's throat.
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And please tell that stubby little moron to stop allowing a 3 year old to cut his hair. I know 3 year olds work cheap but you might as well cut your own hair.

Texas Republican · Dec 6, 2016

North Korea is the world's hemorrhoid.

It has no redeeming qualities and it only causes pain and frustration. Surgical removal would be a relief.

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US and South Korea should stop provocation to release tension in Korea.

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