Kim Hong-kyun, special representative for Korean Peninsula Peace and Security Affairs at the foreign ministry, held talks with his US counterpart Sung Kim via phone and exchanged views on necessary steps in response to the North’s nuclear test earlier in the day, according to the ministry. The Russian Foreign Ministry insisted in a statement that “the North Korean side stop its unsafe escapades and unconditionally implement all resolutions of the United Nations Security Council”.
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Hours later, the White House statement reaffirmed the USA position on the North’s nuclear programing, saying “the United States does not, and never will, accept North Korea as a nuclear state”. Leader Kim says the country has acquired a fully-equipped nuclear attack capability and also put the USA mainland within striking distance.
There were further robust condemnations from Russian Federation, the European Union, NATO, Germany and Britain.
It seems like a cycle with North Korea; they flaunt their nuclear prowess, and they are then reprimanded by the world’s leaders.
Its continued testing despite sanctions presents a severe challenge to Obama in the final months of his presidency and could become a factor in the US presidential election in November.
At a news conference Thursday, Obama said that persuading Pyongyang to change its behavior has been hard and acknowledged the shortcomings of various diplomatic approaches over the past decade.
In a later statement, Park condemned the “fanatic recklessness” of Kim Jong-un’s government. The announcement followed seismic activity near the country’s nuclear site picked up by foreign monitors. Kim is the North Korean leader.
No major changes in the atmospheric presence of xenon were detected but most likely because radioactive substances are less likely to be released into the atmosphere in the case of an underground nuclear test, according to the agency’s statement. It came hours after the isolated communist regime said it had tested its largest nuclear warhead yet – and designed it to sit atop a ballistic missile.
US President Barack Obama on Friday pledged new sanctions against North Korea in response to its nuclear tests, while promising the “full spectrum of US defense capabilities” including deployment of an American theater missile shield for allies Japan and South Korea.
North Korea made the claim Friday that it conducted a “higher level” nuclear warhead test explosion that will allow it to finally build “at will” an array of stronger, smaller and lighter nuclear weapons.
Russian security agencies said the nuclear missile test carried the explosive power of 30 kilotonnes, whereas, the power of the “Fat Man” atomic bomb dropped by the United States on the Japanese town of Nagasaki on August 9, 1945, was of 21 kilotonnes. “We must strongly protest against it”, Abe said, adding that Japan would liaise closely on the matter with the US and South Korea.
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Ten years, five nuclear tests, and they appear to be getting stronger.
