Unification Minister Hong Yong-pyo also said Friday that “North Korea has been preparing a nuclear test and given the related developments, I think that it can do another nuclear test soon”.
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According to South Korean defence ministry spokesman Moon Sang-gyn, the North is poised to conduct its sixth nuclear test imminently.
The UN Security Council in a press statement Friday condemned North Korea’s fifth and biggest nuclear test and discussed a new round of sanctions.
Another KCNA report yesterday said North Koreans were “delighted” by the nuclear test.
“In addition to sanctions in the Security Council, both the USA and Japan, together with [South Korea], will be looking at any unilateral measures as well as bilateral measures as well as possible trilateral cooperation”.
The Hermit Kingdom has test launched ballistic missiles capable of reaching South Korea, Japan and the U.S. territory of Guam this year. North Korea is capable of detonating another nuclear device anytime at one of its unused tunne.
It said its missile and nuclear tests are necessary to counter “a United States nuclear threat to its independence”. The US, Britain and France pushed for the 15-member body to impose new sanctions.
A South Korean army’s K1 tank moves during an annual exercise in Paju, South Korea, near the border with North Korea, Sunday, Sept. 11, 2016.
The South Korean military official told Yonhap that Pyongyang districts thought to be hiding the North’s leadership would be particularly targeted in any attack.
North Korea described a push for further United Nations sanctions as “laughable” – and vowed to continue to strengthen its nuclear arsenal.
“It was none other than the US that compelled the DPRK to have access to nuclear weapons by pursuing the worst-ever nuclear war policy towards the DPRK”, the media outlet added.
Meanwhile, in a show of strength against North Korea, the United States will fly a USA military B-1B bomber flight over South Korea on Tuesday.
The UN Security Council had on Friday agreed to start work on new punitive measures – even though five sets of UN sanctions since the first nuclear test have failed to halt the North’s nuclear drive.
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The nuclear test on Friday was so powerful, it based on the amount of energy released by the quake it caused, say the experts.
