Tag Archives: North Korea

U.S., experts cast doubt on North Korea’s H-bomb claim

By Ju-min Park and Mark Hosenball

SEOUL/WASHINGTON (Reuters) – North Korea said it successfully tested a powerful nuclear bomb on Wednesday, drawing criticism from world powers even though experts and the U.S. government doubt that the isolated nation’s atomic weapons capability is as advanced as Pyongyang claims.

It was the fourth time that North Korea has exploded a nuclear device. It unnerved neighbors South Korea and Japan and prompted an emergency meeting on Wednesday of the U.N. Security Council in New York.

While a nuclear test had long been expected, North Korea’s assertion that it exploded a hydrogen device, much more powerful than an atomic bomb, came as a surprise. The White House said North Korea might not in fact have tested a hydrogen bomb.

The explosion caused an earthquake that was measured by the United States Geological Survey.

Pyongyang also said it was capable of miniaturizing, allowing a nuclear device to be adapted as a weapon and placed on a missile, potentially posing a new threat to the United States and its allies in Asia.

“Let the world look up to the strong, self-reliant nuclear-armed state,” leader Kim Jong Un wrote in what North Korean state TV displayed as a handwritten note.

While the Kim government boasts of its military might to project strength globally, it also plays up the need to defend itself from external threats as a way to maintain control domestically.

The test drew world criticism, including from China and Russia. China, the major trade partner of North Korea, said it will lodge a protest with Pyongyang.

White House spokesman Josh Earnest said any nuclear test would be a “flagrant violation” of U.N. Security Council resolutions. “The initial analysis is not consistent with the claim the regime has made of a successful hydrogen bomb test,” he told reporters.

Conventional atomic bombs split atoms from heavier elements such as uranium or plutonium. They occur in one stage. The process is called fission. Hydrogen bombs have a second stage after fission. This fusion stage releases much more energy.

North Korea has been under U.N. Security Council sanctions since it first tested an atomic device in 2006 and could face additional measures.

The Security Council said it would begin working immediately on significant new measures in response to North Korea, a threat diplomats said could mean an expansion of U.N. sanctions against Pyongyang.

It likely will take several days to determine more precisely what kind of nuclear device Pyongyang set off as a variety of sensors, including “sniffer planes,” collect evidence.

South Korean intelligence officials and several analysts also questioned whether Wednesday’s explosion was a test of a full-fledged hydrogen device, pointing to its having been roughly as powerful as North Korea’s last atomic test in 2013.

Stocks across the world fell for a fifth consecutive day as the North Korea tension added to a growing list of geopolitical worries and China fueled fears about its economy by allowing the yuan to weaken further.

No countries were given advance warning of a nuclear test, South Korea’s intelligence service said, according to lawmakers briefed by intelligence officials.

In previous such tests, Pyongyang had notified China, Russia and the United States beforehand, they said.

U.S. PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATES

North Korea became a topic on the U.S. presidential campaign with the first state nominating contests weeks away and the election in November.

Democratic front-runner Hillary Clinton condemned the test as a “provocative and dangerous act” that the United States should meet with sanctions and strengthened missile defenses.

“North Korea must have no doubt that we will take whatever steps are necessary to defend ourselves and our treaty allies, South Korea and Japan,” she said in a statement.

Republican candidate Donald Trump said the onus was on China to solve what he called the North Korean “problem”, and if it did not, the United States “should make trade very difficult for China.”

North Korea has long coveted diplomatic recognition from Washington, but sees its nuclear deterrent as crucial to ensuring the survival of its third-generation dictatorship.

The North’s state news agency said Pyongyang would act as a responsible nuclear state and vowed not to use its nuclear weapons unless its sovereignty was infringed.

Michael Madden, an expert on North Korea’s secretive leadership, said, “With Iran being off the table, the North Koreans have placed themselves at the top of the foreign policy agenda as far as nation-states who present a threat to the U.S.”

DOUBTS RAISED

The device had a yield of about 6 kilo tonnes, according to the office of a South Korean lawmaker on the parliamentary intelligence committee – roughly the same size as the North’s last test, which was equivalent to 6-7 kilo tonnes of TNT.

“Given the scale, it is hard to believe this is a real hydrogen bomb,” said Yang Uk, a senior research fellow at the Korea Defence and Security Forum.

Joe Cirincione, a nuclear expert who is president of Ploughshares Fund, a global security organization, said North Korea may have mixed a hydrogen isotope in a normal atomic fission bomb.

“Because it is, in fact, hydrogen, they could claim it is a hydrogen bomb,” he said. “But it is not a true fusion bomb capable of the massive multi-megaton yields these bombs produce”.

The USGS reported a 5.1 magnitude quake that South Korea said was 49 km (30 miles) from the Punggye-ri site where the North has conducted nuclear tests in the past.

The North’s previous claims of miniaturization have not been independently verified. Many experts also doubt whether the North possesses missile technology capable of reliably delivering a warhead to the continental United States.

(Additional reporting by Meeyoung Cho, Ju-min Park, James Pearson, Se; Young Lee, Christine Kim, Jee Heun Kahng, Jack Kim in Seoul,; Louis Charbonneau at the United Nations, Ayesha Rascoe and in; Washington, Megha Rajagopalan in Beijing and Takashi Umekawa in; Tokyo; Writing by Tony Munroe and Alistair Bell; Editing by Raju Gopalakrishnan, Mike Collett-White and Howard Goller)

North Korea Criticizes Canada Over Reaction to Pastor’s Life Sentence

North Korea is accusing Canadian government officials of “spouting rubbish” about the trial of Hyeon Soo Lim, the Canadian pastor who North Korea recently sentenced to a life of hard labor.

KCNA, North Korea’s state-run media agency, reported Tuesday that a spokesman for the country’s foreign ministry blasted Canada for its response to Lim’s sentence, handed down last week. The Toronto Star previously reported Canada’s government felt the punishment was “unduly harsh,” and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau told said it sparked “tremendous concern.”

The spokesman told KCNA it was “very shocking” that Canada’s government reacted the way that it did, rather than “feeling guilty about the hideous crime,” that Lim allegedly committed.

The governments of both the United States and Canada actively warn citizens against traveling to North Korea, in large part because the North’s legal system isn’t known for consistently applying its strict laws. The U.S. Department of State warns that things that might not seem criminal — like bringing photographs into the country — can lead to people being detained, arrested or sentenced to hard labor or death. Unsanctioned religious activity is also illegal there.

KCNA reported that Lim was accused of subversion, committing anti-North Korean religious activities and spreading false propaganda about the country overseas, among other charges.

However, Lim’s family members have told CNN that the South Korean-born pastor of the Light Korean Presbyterian Church in Toronto, who is in his 60s, frequently went to North Korea over the past 18 years for a variety of humanitarian causes and his trips were not political in nature.

While KCNA reported the pastor confessed to all of the crimes, The Toronto Star reported other foreigners held in North Korea have said they were pressured into confessing. The paper quoted Trudeau as saying “issues about North Korea’s governance and judicial system are well-known.”

North Korea’s foreign ministry spokesman told KCNA that Canada’s stance on Lim’s sentence would only further complicate the situation. The spokesman said that Canada “has no legal justifications” to find fault with any of North Korea’s actions, and Canada should have apologized and taken steps to prevent future crimes rather than shifting blame to North Korea.

The war of words in the press comes two days after Reuters reported that North Korea allowed Canadian diplomats to meet with the pastor in prison last week. Relaying the information she received about the visit, a church spokeswoman on Sunday told the news agency that the pastor’s spirits remained high and that he had been given medicine to treat his health condition.

North Korea Sentences Canadian Pastor to Life of Hard Labor

A Canadian pastor was sentenced to a life of compulsory labor for “subversive plots and activities” against North Korea, the nation’s state-run KCNA news agency reported Wednesday.

The news agency reported Hyeon Soo Lim “confessed to all heinous crimes he had committed.”

According to a CNN report, Lim is a pastor at the Light Korean Presbyterian Church in Toronto. Family members have told CNN that the South Korean-born pastor, in his early 60s, has frequently traveled to North Korea over the past 18 years for various humanitarian efforts. This time, they said he planned to support church projects like an orphanage and nursing home.

North Korea didn’t see it that way. According to KCNA, Lim’s trips were far more political.

He was accused of hurting the dignity of North Korea’s leadership, committing anti-North Korean religious activities and spreading false propaganda about North Korea overseas. He also allegedly helped U.S. and South Korean programs “lure and abduct” North Korean defectors.

Lim left for North Korea in January and had been detained since February, CNN reported.

The United States and Canadian governments both caution their citizens not to travel to North Korea, with both citing that unsanctioned religious activity can lead to detainment. The U.S. Department of State warns that North Korea isn’t known for consistently applying its strict laws, and that visitors could be arrested or detained for things that might not seem criminal — like disrespecting the country’s former leaders or bringing photographs into the nation. The State Department also warns violating laws there can result in long sentences of hard labor or death.

While Lim reportedly confessed to the crimes, CNN reported that other citizens of Western nations have previously stated they were forced into confessing by North Korean officials.

Canadian officials released a statement to multiple media outlets that criticized the sentence.

Canadian news agency CTV reported the statement said the government was “dismayed at the unduly harsh sentence,” especially because of Lim’s age and health, and that North Korean officials have not approved “repeated requests” to let Canadian authorities visit with the pastor.

North Korean Leader Claims Nation is Ready to Detonate Hydrogen Bomb

The leader of North Korea is reportedly claiming the country now has the ability to detonate a powerful hydrogen bomb, though his comments immediately drew skepticism from experts.

The state-run KCNA news agency reported Thursday that Kim Jong-un made the announcement while at the Phyongchon Revolutionary Site, which is significant to the country’s arms history.

According to the KCNA report, Kim said North Korea had evolved into “a powerful nuclear weapons state ready to detonate self-reliant A-bomb and H-bomb to reliably defend its sovereignty and the dignity of the nation.” If true, it would be a landmark development.

Hydrogen bombs rely on a different nuclear reaction than atomic bombs and are known to be much more powerful. South Korea’s Yonhap news agency reported that while Kim has publicly touted on numerous occasions that his country has atomic-bomb capabilities, this appeared to be the first time the leader publicly indicated that North Korea possessed a hydrogen bomb.

Still, experts took Kim’s claim with a grain of salt. The leader is known for making bold claims.

“It’s hard to regard North Korea as possessing an H-bomb. I think it seems to be developing it,” Lee Chun-geun, a research fellow at the Science and Technology Policy Institute, told Yonhap.

The BBC quoted John Nilsson-Wright, the head of the Asia Program at Britain’s Royal Institute of International Affairs, as saying Kim’s comments appeared to be “an attention-grabbing effort to assert North Korean autonomy and his own political authority.”

Seoul’s Spies Report that North Korea is Gearing Up for a Nuclear Test

ABC News reported today that South Korea’s spy agency may be preparing for a fourth nuclear test, although they don’t believe it will happen in the immediate future.

South Korea’s National Intelligence Service said to the Yonhap news agency that the North may be ready to perform a test because of confrontations with the United States and its allies. The agency did not provide details on what type of test North Korea would be performing, other than it was nuclear related. They also did not elaborate on how they received this information.

The speculation that North Korea might be preparing for a fourth nuclear test is strengthened by the country’s announcement last month that North Korea was restarting its atomic bomb fuel production plants. At this time, it’s unclear if their scientists have developed a method to attach nuclear weapons to long-range missiles. However, North Korea has announced they do have such a weapon that could hit the U.S. mainland.

North Korea has performed nuclear tests in 2013, 2009, and 2006, which forced the U.N. to draw sanctions on the country.

On October 10th, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un stated in a speech that he was prepared to wage war against the United States, according to USA Today.

The Pentagon Reports that North Korea could Hit U.S. with Nuclear Strike

While North Korea has never been forthright with their nuclear capabilities, Washington officials stated that tiny communist nation does have the capability to hit the mainland of the U.S. with nuclear strikes. The Pentagon went on to state that they are prepared for such a situation.

“I’m pretty confident that we’re going to knock down the numbers that are going to be shot,” Admiral Bill Gortney, who heads the U.S. Northern Command and the North American Aerospace Defense Command, said of a potential strike.

Every few years North Korea taunts Western nations with allusions to the country’s nuclear capabilities. Throughout the past several years, they have continually announced successful nuclear tests.

Last month, North Korea’s space agency announced Pyongyang was building a new satellite and getting ready to launch the satellite for possible long range missile attacks. The country continues to state that the rocket launches are part of a legitimate space program that wants to put satellites into orbit. North Korea has defied past sanctions and international warnings by continuing to conduct missile tests.

In March, the U.S. Missile Defense Agency reported that North Korea could launch an intercontinental ballistic missile this year.

In light of recent reports on North Korea’s possible nuclear capabilities, the U.S. military is investing to modernize its current missile defense system with new sensors and radars in order to better identify potential launches.

“We’re ready for him [Kim Jong Un], and we’re ready 24 hours a day…,” Gortney said.

Report Says One Christian Martyred Every 5 Minutes

A new report from Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe shows that one Christian is being martyred worldwide every five minutes.

Massimo Introvigne told a conference there are about 105,000 Christians killed every year for their faith.  That number doesn’t include victims of war.

“If these numbers are not cried out to the world, if this slaughter is not stopped, if it is not acknowledged that the persecution of Christians is the first worldwide emergency in the matter of violence and religious discrimination, the dialogue between religions will only produce beautiful conferences but no concrete results,” Introvigne said according to Zenit.org.

The data also showed that between 50,000 and 70,000 Christians are being held in North Korean prison camps.

The report’s publishers said they were making the information available for Christians to keep in mind during the upcoming National Day of Prayer.

“I think it’s important considering all that has happened in the last year, from Iraq to Syria, to the issues of persecution in North Korea; that we have a time here in America to come together and pray as one body of believers for the people who are part of our family, who are persecuted,” Open Doors CEO and President David Curry said.

U.S. Warns North Korea on Nuclear Threat

United States officials have issued a stern warning to North Korea because of their threats to the U.S. and the world over their nuclear capabilities.

The day after North Korea said they have turned up their nuclear reactor at Yongbyon to full production, U.S. officials said the North Korean government should focus on “fulfilling its international obligations.”

“We will work with our partners in the context of the six-party talks to try to return North Korea to a posture of fulfilling those commitments that they have made,” White House spokesman Josh Earnest said.

“We will repeat our call that North Korea should refrain from the irresponsible provocations that aggravate regional tension and should focus instead on fulfilling its international obligations and commitments.”

Earnest added that the world will not allow North Korea to become a nuclear state.

Analysts say that it’s likely Kim Jong-Un is looking at the way Iran was able to parlay their nuclear program into a financial windfall and removal of sanctions and is trying to position his nation to gain a similar bonus.

North Korea Boosting Nuclear Arsenal

North Korean officials have stated their nuclear enrichment plant is now operating at full capacity.

The director of North Korea’s Atomic Energy Institute praised what he considered the innovations of his research teams.

“[The scientists have worked] to guarantee the reliability of the nuclear deterrent in every way by steadily improving the levels of nuclear weapons with various missions in quality and quantity,” the state-run Korean Central News Agency quoted the unnamed director.

“All the nuclear facilities in Yongbyon including the uranium enrichment plant and 5 MW graphite-moderated reactor were rearranged, changed or readjusted and they started normal operation.”

The news of the full nuclear operation comes a day after the country reported they would be launching satellites using long-range missiles that could also carry a potential nuclear payload.  South Korean officials say that the launches, if they take place, would be a violation of United Nations resolutions.

“South Korea and the United States are jointly watching for all possibilities with regard to North Korea’s (potential) long-range missile launch,” said South Korea’s Defense Ministry spokesman, Kim Min-seok, according to the news agency. “So far, no particular signs have been seen.”

North Korea Satellite Launch Possibly Cover for Missile Test

North Korea has announced they will be launching satellites to mark the 70th anniversary of the country’s ruling party.

“Space development for peaceful purposes is a sovereign state’s legitimate right … and the people of (North Korea) are fully determined to exercise this right no matter what others may say about it,” the director told Pyongyang’s official Korean Central News Agency.

The National Aerospace Development Administration (NADA) released a statement saying that  “the world will clearly see a series of satellites soaring into the sky at times and locations determined” by the ruling Workers’ Party.

“The NADA is pushing forward at a final phase the development of a new earth observation satellite,” KCNA quoted NADA’s director.

“Successful progress made in reconstructing and expanding satellite launching grounds for higher-level satellite lift-off has laid a firm foundation for dynamically pushing ahead with the nation’s development of space science,” the director added.

The launches will be carried out with missiles that are causing concern around the world.

The U.S. and South Korean militaries both report the satellite launches are being used as methods to test long-range missiles that could deliver a nuclear payload to South Korea or surrounding nations.