South Korea stopped earlier broadcasts after it agreed with Pyongyang in late August on a package of measures aimed at easing animosities that had the rivals threatening war.
Advertisement
“Because it is, in fact, hydrogen, they could claim it is a hydrogen bomb”, he said.
The North’s announcement of a “successful” hydrogen bomb test took the world by surprise as it came without warning, although the communist state had made claims about developing thermonuclear technology.
“The seismic data that’s been received indicates that the explosion is probably significantly below what one would expect from an H-bomb test”, said Australian nuclear policy and arms control specialist Crispin Rovere.
While calling the North Korean nuclear test “a flagrant violation of worldwide law”, Han and Carter reaffirmed the United States’ commitment to the defense of South Korea, which includes Washington’s extended deterrence offered by the US nuclear umbrella.
While the Obama Administration has pursued a policy of “strategic patience” with limited dialogue occurring at the official level between the U.S. and North Korea, a modest number of U.S. NGOs continued to operate in the North. In recent months, even as North Korea has declined invitations by U.S. officials to engage, American NGO workers have continued operating inside North Korea.
Ministry officials refused to elaborate about what USA military assets were under consideration, but they likely refer to B-52 bombers, F-22 stealth fighters and nuclear-powered submarines.
A few experts said North Korea may have attempted to test a “boosted fission weapon”, a step on the way to making a nuclear bomb easier to miniaturize. B-2 and B-52 bombers are capable of delivering nuclear weapons.
In response to the claims, the UN Security Council agreed on Wednesday to also implement new measures to punish North Korea for its provocation.
The weapons yield was initially estimated at between six and nine kilotons – similar to the North’s last nuclear test in 2013.
The device had a yield of about 6 kilotonnes, 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 kilotonnes of TNT.
Countries, including Japan, India, and Russian Federation, have condemned the actions of North Korea.
A US government source said Washington believes North Korea had set off the latest in a series of tests of atomic bombs. Initial reports described the test’s tremor as a “man-made” quake.
White House press secretary Josh Earnest suggested strongly on Wednesday that the North Korean regime was lying when it claimed to have successfully detonated a hydrogen bomb the day before.
This is smaller than the explosive yields recorded by USA bombs that were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945. An explosion two to five times more powerful would have been reported if it were successful, the official said, requesting anonymity because of department rules.
So what exactly is a hydrogen bomb?
Hydrogen bombs use a two-step process of fission and fusion that releases substantially more energy than an atomic bomb.
The hydrogen bomb already is the global standard for the five nations with the greatest nuclear capabilities: the U.S., Russia, France, the United Kingdom and China.
Advertisement
Japan is particularly sensitive to North Korea’s nuclear and missile tests as prevailing winds blow from the Korean peninsula towards Japan and Pyongyang’s ballistic rockets have flown over Japan into the Pacific Ocean. North Korea is thought to have a handful of rudimentary nuclear bombs and has spent decades trying to flawless a multistage, long-range missile to carry smaller versions of those bombs. In 2013, that provision was further strengthened to allow countries to seize and destroy material connected to North Korea’s weapons programs. To build a credible nuclear program, the North must explode new devices – and more advanced ones – so its scientists can continually improve their designs and technology.
