Pyongyang tested a nuclear device on January 6 that North Korea said was a hydrogen bomb.
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Citing a US official directly familiar with the intelligence assessment, CNN is reporting there may have been components associated with a hydrogen bomb tested.
The official said the analysis showed that the test was conducted more than two times deeper underground than originally assessed – at a depth consistent with what might be needed for a hydrogen bomb.
It would require the investigation and punishment of those who knowingly import into North Korea any goods or technology regarding weapons of mass destruction; those who engage in human rights abuses, money laundering and counterfeiting that supports the Kim regime; and those who engage in “cyberterrorism”. A Defense Ministry spokesman declined to say whether PAC-3 batteries and the Aegis destroyers had been deployed to respond to any threat from North Korea Nakatani asked in a press briefing whether Japan would shoot down any North Korean missile said: ‘We will take steps to respond but I will refrain from revealing specific measures given the nature of the situation.’ The advanced Aegis vessels are able to track multiple targets and are armed with SM-3 missiles created to destroy incoming warheads in space before they re-enter the atmosphere and fall to there targets. “The South Korean military is continuing to keep a close watch on any signs of North Korea’s long-range missile test”.
The United States regularly monitors North Korea from space, while Japan began satellite monitoring of the country in 2003.
The Beijing media outlet also warned the North of “overrating” its own capabilities, and said Pyongyang shouldn’t expect China’s protection at the United Nations Security Council, where Beijing is a permanent member. “Because of the strategic interests at stake, China will be forced to further embrace North Korea”.
The U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee approved legislation Thursday to tighten sanctions against North Korea following its latest nuclear test.
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The CNN report provides some of the most direct evidence that the January 6th test might have been carried out with this goal in mind.
