South Korea responded to North Kore… North Korea denied the mine planting and threatened to attack South Korean loudspeakers.
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(AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon). South Korean army soldiers ride on a truck in Yeoncheon, south of the demilitarized zone that divides the two Koreas, South Korea, Friday, Jan. 8, 2016.
In October 2014, North Korean troops opened fire after South Korean activists launched balloons carrying propaganda leaflets.
South Korea announced plans to restart propaganda broadcasts over its border with North Korea, a day after Pyongyang claimed to have tested a hydrogen bomb.
North Korea considers propaganda broadcasts a direct provocation of war. Pyongyang is extremely sensitive to any outside criticism of the authoritarian leadership of Kim, the third member of his family to rule the country. The park’s operation won’t likely be affected much as the restriction will apply to clients, potential buyers and service providers from South Korea, rather than managers who commute to work with North Korean laborers.
The rhetorical battle eased after historic summit talks in 2000 between North Korean leader Kim Jong Il, the father of Kim Jong Un, and South Korean President Kim Dae-jung, but it didn’t stop. North Korean military forces often compete to show their loyalty to the leader.
The United States is limited in its military response for fear of provoking an unpredictable regime in Pyongyang, said Anthony Cordesman, a defence policy expert at the Washington-based Center for Strategic and International Studies think-tank.
Kerry told reporters on Thursday that he spoke by phone with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi. For current sanctions and any new penalties to work, better cooperation and stronger implementation from China is seen as key. Officials refused to elaborate, but the assets likely are B-52 bombers, F-22 stealth fighters and nuclear-powered submarines.
Nevertheless, this is the fourth nuclear test by North Korea. White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest said “The initial analysis is not consistent with North Korean claims of a successful hydrogen bomb”.
It was unclear how more sanctions would deter North Korea, which has conducted four nuclear tests since 2006 while paying little heed to global pressure.
Referring to bilateral relations with North Korea, the upper house urged the Japanese government to employ “firm measures”, such as additional sanctions, against the country as part of efforts to comprehensively resolve the outstanding issues of Pyongyang’s nuclear and missile development as well as its abductions of Japanese nationals in the 1970s and 1980s.
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The institute said the level of xenon-133 isotopes found in the samples was similar to levels normally detected at its two radioactive gas detectors on the eastern and western coasts. Seoul agreed to stop them a year ago in a deal with the North to resolve particularly high tensions after a border skirmish.
