The plan is to carry out pre-emptive strikes against North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and the country’s military leadership if any signs of an imminent use of nuclear weapons is detected or in case of a war, the official explained.
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While South Korea and Japan might have legitimate concerns over nuclear movements in the neighbourhood, there is also urgent need to resolve the problem through constructive engagement with the North aimed at addressing its concerns as well.
The United States may impose unilateral sanctions on North Korea over its recent nuclear test, an American special envoy to the isolated state says. The initial one in October 2006 was in the first tunnel and the last four in the second tunnel, according to Seoul’s defence ministry.
The spokesman declined to elaborate, citing intelligence matters, but said the South’s military is on full combat-readiness to respond to “further nuclear tests, ballistic missile launches or land provocation” by the North.
However, the speed with which North Korea is modernizing its nuclear and missile programme through indigenous research and development could one day present formidable threat.
China urges North Korea to refrain from actions that might exacerbate tension and return to the correct direction of denuclearization at an early date.
The North also vowed to increase its nuclear strike force “in quality and in quantity”, two days after its fifth test in a decade sparked global condemnation and moves for tougher United Nations sanctions. U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter said China had an “important responsibility” in North Korea.
The US and France urged the Council members to push ahead with new sanctions against North Korea, saying its repeated tests show “complete disregard” for worldwide law. The United States has about 28,500 troops in South Korea.
US State Department’s Special Representative for North Korea Policy Ambassador Sung Kim shakes hands with Japanese Foreign Ministry’s Director-General for Asian and Oceanian Affairs Kenji Kanasugi prior to a meeting at the foreign ministry in Tokyo.
But a United States expert, based on power of the natural disaster it triggered, said it could have be up to 30 kilotonnes.
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North Korea has pledged to develop a robust nuclear arsenal to protect itself from the U.S. military, which occasionally deploys nuclear-powered warships and aircraft capable of carrying atomic weapons in the region. The flight was scheduled to take place on Monday, but got delayed due to bad weather.
