North Korea conducted its fifth nuclear test last Friday, resulting in another round of worldwide condemnation.
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North Korea is ready to conduct an additional nuclear test at any time, South Korea’s Defence Ministry said on Monday, three days after the reclusive North’s fifth test drew widespread condemnation.
South Korea has measures in place to reduce Pyongyang, the North Korean capital, “to ashes” if Kim Jong Un’s regime shows any signs that it is planning to carry out a nuclear attack.
The remarks came after North Korea carried out its fifth nuclear test on Friday, claiming it had successfully tested a nuclear warhead, drawing a flurry of global condemnation.
KCNA reported that citizens of the secretive country, which recently banned sarcasm, were “delighted” by the weapons test. “This is absolutely unacceptable”, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe told his senior military officials.
A defiant North Korea restated its demand for recognition as a “legitimate” nuclear-armed state, as world powers pondered ways to punish Pyongyang for its latest and largest atomic test.
Global leaders were united in their condemnation of the provocative move, with the United Nations Security council calling an immediate emergency meeting to discuss a coherent worldwide response.
The United Nations security council denounced North Korea’s decision to carry out the test and said it would begin work immediately on a resolution.
The North’s latest nuclear test was the most powerful to date and its claim to have used “standardized” warheads sparked worries it was making headway in its push to develop small and sophisticated warheads to be topped on missiles. The South believes the North is capable of carrying out more tests at any time. “The council must use every tool at its disposal to change North Korea’s calculus”.
But a United States expert, based on power of the quake it triggered, said it could have be up to 30 kilotonnes.
Obama reaffirmed, as he has done repeatedly following North Korean ballistic missile launches, the U.S. commitment to “take necessary steps to defend our allies in the region”, namely South Korea and Japan.
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According to an AFP report, North Korea on Sunday demanded that the USA acknowledge the isolated country as a “legitimate nuclear weapons state”, and promised to increase its arsenal in both “quality and quantity”.
