Video - Kim Jong Un Guides Test-fire of Ballistic Rocket Based on Precision Guidance System

Video - Kim Jong Un Guides Test-Fire of New Rocket Hwasong-12. (Full length vid)

North Korea’s Mysterious New island construction sites.

North Korea’s Mysterious New island construction sites. HT: Thediplomat. By Damen Cook.

Over the past five years, North Korea has constructed several military facilities on small islands surrounding the city of Sohae, a leading missile development and testing site. In some cases, the islands themselves were constructed; what amounted to little more than a pile of sand 20 years ago is a burgeoning military facility today. 

Sohae, a sizeable metropolis on the country’s west coast, has hosted many critical missile tests, including the 2012 and 2016 Kwangmyŏngsŏng satellite launches. It is the prime research and development hub for key intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) technology. Sohae is expected to host more missile tests in the coming years as North Korea focuses its efforts on ICBM development.

North Korea has built at least five military facilities on islands near Sohae. The islands identified in the infographics below are not uniform in size or geological structure, and their military facilities are not identical to one another. Their missions may likewise be individually distinct. Some of the new facilities may not even be primarily served by Sohae’s military facilities, but by other nearby bases. We have dubbed them the “Sohae islands” because Sohae is the most significant political-military structure nearby.

There is not enough open-source information to confidently determine the mission of these new island structures. Their purpose remains elusive.

The “Sohae islands” may sprout new buildings or host missile tests. The KN-06 air defense system may arrive — on the islands or elsewhere — to defend the city’s critical military infrastructure (and the lives of its inhabitants). Without question, key ICBM components will continue to be tested at Sohae, whether from an island or the Tongch’ang-Dong Launch Facility on the mainland. The city is rising in strategic importance as North Korea focuses more and more of its efforts on mastering ICBM technology. In fact, if North Korea follows through on its recent pseudo-threat to test a new missile every week, all eyes will be turning to Sohae very soon. Read the full story here.

Damen Cook is lead research associate at Strategic Sentinel.

Former North Korea Female guard reveals what life is like at a North Korean prison camp.

A 2002 satellite photo shows the barracks of a camp at Haengyong, North Korea (Photo: Reuters)

Former North Korea Female guard reveals what life is like at a North Korean prison camp.(Independent).

Lim Hye-jin described watching interned political dissenters set on fire, beheaded and shot dead en masse in collective punishment following escape attempts.

Thousands of inmates in North Korean prison camps face beatings, summary executions, starvation and rape, a former guard has revealed.

Lim Hye-jin described watching interned political dissenters set on fire, beheaded and shot dead en masse in collective punishment following escape attempts, in an interview with the Daily Mail.
The revelations come as tensions continue to boil on the Korean peninsula, stoked by the aggressive posturing of Donald Trump and senior members of his administration.


After being briefly imprisoned herself for illegal training, Ms Lim reportedly defected from the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) 15 years ago, and now lives in the southern capital, Seoul.

In one incident, which Ms Lim described to the Mail, a pair of brothers made a temporarily successful bid for freedom, and seven members of their family were executed on the spot in revenge.

The brothers were later dragged back to the camp, pelted with stones by prisoners forced to participate in the punishment, then beheaded. Ms Lim said this was done as "a warning" to the other inmates.

Ms Lim also reported seeing a woman stripped naked and set on fire, by guards who "do not see [prisoners] as human beings, just as animals", and "affairs" between male prison guards and inmates which were "basically rape". 


There are an estimated 200,000 people in prison camps across the pariah state, and tens of thousands more in so-called "re-education" camps run along similarly brutal lines.Read the full story here.

Is Pres.Trump backing Kim Jong Un into a corner, from which he will strike first? (nknews).

This is not routine provocation: the DPRK leadership senses the danger it increasingly faces.

Considering the fiery state of affairs in the cauldron of Northeast Asia, the chant by the three witches of Shakespeare’s Macbeth seems ghoulishly appropriate:

Double, double toil and trouble; 

Fire burn and caldron bubble. 

Cool it with a baboon’s blood, Then the charm is firm and good.

The charm, of course, is North Korea’s combination of nuclear bombs and intercontinental ballistic missiles with which to deliver those bombs. But where does that baboon’s blood come from: the United States, its ally Japan, its peninsular partner South Korea – or all three?

Since Kim has chosen to rattle his sabers as a show of defensive/offensive capability despite the risk of alarming South Korean voters, it becomes clear that we ought to be concerned about the current level of tension on the peninsula. Either that or Pyongyang values a rapprochement with Seoul much less than it wants to test the as-yet-to-be-measured new U.S. president.

It is possible that what we are witnessing is not Pyongyang’s routine bellicosity. It could be the sound of a rattlesnake sensing – as well as communicating – danger.

There is an old adage to never corner a frightened animal, for that is when it is most apt to bite. Kim Jong Un is likely wondering what more he has to do to keep the Americans at bay. It could be an event like that sixth nuclear test many are expecting – or something even worse. Read the full story

Thursday, April 27, 2017

Podcast - The North Korean Electromagnetic Pulse Threat, Or Lack Thereof ?

@gbrumfiel and @ArmsControlWonk clearly had fun talking about EMPs.

Can a nuclear weapon in space fired by North Korea knock off much of the world's electricity? 

Jeffrey Lewis, of the Middlebury Institute of International Studies, says not really.

U.S., Japan and South Korea have agreed to prepare a "shock therapy package" for North Korea.

U.S., Allies Preparing 'Shock Therapy' for North Korea https://t.co/AW9Ktb6JZe

— NorthKoreaRealTime (@BuckTurgidson79) April 25, 2017

U.S., Japan and South Korea have agreed to prepare a "shock therapy package" for North Korea.

The U.S., Japan and South Korea have agreed to prepare a "shock therapy package" for North Korea in case it conducts another nuclear or missile test, officials here said Monday.

"Talk of shock therapy itself is sends a strong deterrent message." "Beijing has already given consent to the idea," another Foreign Ministry official claimed. "The key point is to cut off the North's sources of hard currency with the help of China, while the three countries are mulling their own sanctions like the U.S. designating the North as a state sponsor of terrorism and a secondary boycott."Read the full story here.

Japan says that Wu Dawei, the Chinese pointman on North Korea, is arriving in Tokyo today for three days of talks pic.twitter.com/D1dcxZ9hYI

— Anna Fifield (@annafifield) April 25, 2017

U.S. nuclear-powered submarine armed with Tomahawk missiles arrives in S.Korea https://t.co/LAPNF6Q7Cv pic.twitter.com/QBv3QFNATs

— NK NEWS (@nknewsorg) April 25, 2017

North Korea ready to carry out nuclear test at any time, most likely period is between April 25 and May 9 — South Korean paper.

North Korea ready to carry out nuclear test at any time — South Korean paper. (Tass).

The most likely period for the nuclear test is between April 25 and May 9

North Korea has stepped up activities at its nuclear test site in Punggye-ri in the northeast and is ready to carry out a nuclear test at any time, the Dong-A Ilbo daily said Monday, citing a research by the Johns Hopkins University experts.

The US-Korea Institute department at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, which analyzed the recent satellite images of the testing ground, said Pyongyang may carry out its sixth nuclear test at any time, upon an order from the country’s leader Kim Jong Un.

According to the sources, the most likely period for the test is between April 25, the Military Foundation Day in North Korea, and May 9, when South Koreans will vote in early presidential polls.

Tensions on the Korean Peninsula began to grow in early 2016 when North Korea conducted a nuclear test and after that launched a ballistic missile carrying a satellite. In September 2016, Pyongyang carried out another nuclear test while mover than 20 missiles were test-fired during the year.

More:

Work seems to have resumed at #DPRK's nuclear test site around the North Portal and Main admin area. https://t.co/HTGQqagfTa

— 38 North (@38NorthNK) April 21, 2017

Can North Korea Be Re-Designated as 'State sponsor of Terrorism'? Should It?

Can North Korea Be Re-Designated as 'State sponsor of Terrorism'? Should It? HT: 38north.org.

Given the March 8 statement by the Malaysian Prime Minister implicating the government of North Korea in the murder of Kim Jong Nam, it would seem to qualify as an act of state sponsored international terrorism under the law.

The use of a prohibited chemical weapon in an attack in a public area of another nation makes it particularly heinous. True, it is not of the same level of viciousness as North Korea’s past campaign of state sponsored terrorism. The victim was a single North Korean terminated apparently in Pyongyang’s Byzantine family power struggle, whereas in Pyongyang’s previous campaign of state sponsored terror, the targets were South Korean civilians and officials in large numbers.

This included a bomb attack in Rangoon that murdered a significant part of the ROK Cabinet and the bombing of a South Korean civilian airliner killing 115 people in the 1980s. Moreover, a single intra-family assassination does not necessarily meet the “repeated” support criterion for designation, but if the international outcry over the assassination is loud enough (e.g., through some decision of the UN Security Council), one suspects a means could be found to move forward. It would seem absurd to have to wait for Pyongyang to conduct a second VX attack in order to do so.

It is possible that the Secretary of State could simply conclude that the DPRK had violated assurances that permitted President Bush to lift the designation as a state sponsor, requiring him to re-designate Pyongyang; he could also consider North Korea’s recent cyber attacks on the US and South Korea as an act of state-sponsored terrorism.[4]

So, in all probability, the Secretary could designate North Korea. This might take a little time—even in this post-truth era—as sanctions decisions are fact-based and must meet legal and procedural standards. This will require some concrete, legal basis for concluding there was a definite North Korean government role in the assassination. The real issues are whether and when he should do it.


There are two strong reasons to do so.

The first is the heinous nature of the killing—particularly the use of a chemical weapon on the territory of a previously friendly country. 

The second is that the diplomatic context for removing the DPRK from the state sponsors list has evaporated. Prior to the assassination, the second reason was often given for returning North Korea to the list. It never gained traction largely because it did not give the Secretary any legal basis for such a step. But, now that there is an actual act of terrorism to consider, the lack of a diplomatic context for keeping North Korea off the list provides support for taking the step. It is hard to find a tactical basis for not taking the step when our previous nuclear dialogue is in a state of collapse. There is certainly a diplomatic logic to withdrawing what was, in fact if not in law, a concession made to Pyongyang in the context of progress on nuclear and missile issues now that the North Koreans are hell-bent on developing a strategic nuclear deterrent. Read the full story here.

Russia concerned about reports on weapon-grade plutonium production in North Korea.

Russia concerned about reports on weapon-grade plutonium production in North Korea. (Tass).

Reports on the resumption of weapons-grade plutonium production in North Korea raise concerns, Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Wednesday.

"Indeed, this continues to trigger concern," he told reporters. "All known countries that favor the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula are particularly concerned and continue meticulous work with the North Korean side," Peskov added.

Reuters earlier reported citing its own sources in the US Department of State that the North Korean authorities had resumed plutonium production for use in munitions. Read the full story here.

North Korea Party To Give Kim Jong Un New Title.

North Korea Party To Give Kim Jong Un New Title.(NDtv).

North Korea's ruling party is preparing to bestow a new title on leader Kim Jong Un, another clear sign that the third heir to North Korea's dynasty of Kims is firmly in control despite his country's deepening international isolation over one of his key ambitions, to keep developing more and better nuclear weapons.

The state-run Korean Central News Agency today said the agenda for the congress included reviewing the works of the party's Central Committee and Central Audit Commission, revising party rules, electing Kim to the top party post and electing a new central leadership for the party.

The new title would likely elevate Kim to a level equivalent to his late father and grandfather, who held the title of general secretary of the Workers' Party - a mostly symbolic move to demonstrate the young leader is in full control and ready to begin a new era of his own. Kim is already head of the party, but with the title of first secretary.

Kim opened the lavish congress with a brief speech on Friday that singled out North Korea's advances in developing nuclear weapons and rockets capable of putting satellites into orbit, as examples of the country's progress in the face of international criticism and tough sanctions that threaten to further stifle its struggling economy.

All of the previous six congresses were convened by Kim's grandfather, national founder Kim Il Sung. The previous one was used as the stage to formally announce Kim's father, Kim Jong Il, as the second heir to power.

"Eternal president" Kim Il Sung died in 1994, and "eternal general-secretary" Kim Jong Il - who rarely spoke in public - never called for the convening of a congress, though they were on paper supposed to be held every five years.

This one is clearly designed to put the spotlight on Kim Jong Un, who has yet to travel abroad or meet any world leaders. With that in mind, the North has invited over 100 foreign journalists in to cover the event, though none have been let inside the convention hall.

Instead, they have been kept busy touring showcase factories, hospitals and historic sites. Hmmm.......'Little fatso? Read the full story here.

North Korea Reportedly Fired successfully Ballistic Missile From Submarine.

North Korea Reportedly Fired successfully Ballistic Missile From Submarine.(RocketNews).

Seoul (AFP) – North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un hailed a submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM) test as an “eye-opening success”, state media said Sunday, declaring Pyongyang has the ability to strike Seoul and the US whenever it pleases.

Saturday’s missile launch came amid growing concern that Pyongyang is preparing a fifth nuclear test.

But it was followed just hours later by a North Korean offer to impose a unilateral moratorium on nuclear testing if the United States suspends annual military exercises with South Korea.

The US and Britain denounced the SLBM test as a violation of UN Security Council resolutions and called on the North to refrain from further moves that could destabilise the region.

South Korea’s defence ministry said the missile, fired from a submarine in the Sea of Japan, flew around 30 kilometres (18 miles).

The North’s state-run KCNA news agency said the test, personally monitored by Kim, confirmed the reliability of the country’s underwater launching system.

It also cited the young leader as saying Pyongyang was now capable of “hitting the heads of the South Korean puppet forces and the US imperialists anytime as it pleases.”

Still images broadcast on state television showed Kim on the deck of the submarine before watching the test through binoculars from shore and meeting the crew and scientists afterwards.

“This eye-opening success constitutes one more precious gift the defence scientists and technicians are presenting to the great leaders and the party,” the KCNA quoted Kim as saying.

– Nuclear test offer –

Pictures showed the missile, with “The North Star” emblazoned on it, soar out of the water and fly into the sky, leaving a massive plume of smoke above the sea surface.

State TV also showed what it claimed were underwater images of the missile being ejected from the submarine, using key “cold launch” technology.

North Korea has been pushing to acquire an SLBM capability that would take its nuclear strike threat to a new level, allowing deployment far beyond the Korean peninsula and the potential to retaliate in the event of a nuclear attack.

In an interview with the Associated Press in New York, North Korean Foreign Minister Ri Su-Yong said Pyongyang would be willing to halt further tests if Washington announced an end to annual joint military exercises with Seoul.

The annual drills always raise tensions on the Korean peninsula, with the North condemning them as provocative rehearsals for invasion.

North Korea holds ground test of intercontinental ballistic missile engine in presence of Kim Jong-un.

North Korea holds ground test of intercontinental ballistic missile engine in presence of Kim Jong-un. (Tass).

North Korea has conducted a ground test of the engine of a new-type intercontinental ballistic missile, the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported.

The country’s leader Kim Jong-un was supervising the test at the Sohae range, the report said.
Kim compared the test with "a milestone event in the cause of strengthening the DPRK’s defense capability shortly before the seventh congress of the Workers’ Party of Korea" to be held in early May 2016.

He said the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea now has "access to another type of nuclear attack on American imperialists and other hostile forces.".

The news agency quoted Kim as saying, "Now the DPRK can tip new type inter-continental ballistic rockets with more powerful nuclear warheads and keep any cesspool of evils in the earth including the U.S. mainland within our striking range and reduce them to ashes so that they may not survive in our planet."

KCNA lauded that the latest technology was developed by North Korean scientists in what was called an "eye-catching event which demonstrated our national defense capability before the world."

Such bombastic rhetoric and annual threats are common from North Korea during this time of the year. Every spring, tensions on the peninsula increases as U.S. forces hold joint military exercises with South Korea. The two exercises, "Key Resolve" and "Foal Eagle," will run until April 30.

Video - North Korea releases propaganda clip showing Washington under nuclear attack

North Korea releases propaganda film showing Washington under nuclear attack. (Yahoo).

North Korea on Saturday released a new video titled “Last Chance,” showing a submarine-launched nuclear missile laying waste to Washington and concluding with the United States flag in flames.

The four-minute video romps through the history of US-Korean relations and ends with a digitally manipulated sequence showing a missile surging through clouds, swerving back to the earth and slamming into the road in front of Washington’s Lincoln Memorial.

The US Capitol building explodes in the impact and a message flashes up on the screen in Korean: “If US imperialists budge an inch toward us, we will immediately hit them with nuclear [weapons].”

The video was published on the North Koreas news website, DPRK Today, and shows images from the Korean War, the capture of US spy ship Pueblo in 1968 and the first crisis over North Korea’s nuclear program in the early 1990s.

Pyongyang has threatened nuclear and conventional strikes against South Korea and the US mainland in response to South Korean-US war games.

Meanwhile North Korea leader Kim Jong-un on Friday watched a live-fire long-range artillery drill simulating a strike on the official residence of his South Korean counterpart.

North Korea warned Saturday that its military is ready to attack Seoul's presidential palace unless South Korean President Park Geun-hye apologizes for "treason" and publicly executes officials responsible for what Pyongyang says are plans to attack its leadership.

Military tensions have been soaring on the divided Korean peninsula following increased US military presence in the region and joint military drills with the South which Pyongyang has termed as provocative rehearsals for invasion.

Having repeatedly shunned North Korean proposals for negotiations over the last several years, the US government early March succeeded in securing harsh UN sanctions that can only further strain relations.

The US is using UN Security Council resolutions to wage an economic warfare against North Korea and imposing collective punishment on the entire country’s population.

Pyongyang says developing a nuclear weapon is necessary in order to protect itself against US interference in North Korean affairs, and that the bomb can defend Pyongyang against any invasion.

North Korea leader Kim Jong-Un orders nuclear warhead test.

North Korea leader Kim Jong-Un orders nuclear warhead test. (Yahoo).

North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un has ordered an upcoming nuclear warhead test and multiple ballistic missile launches, escalating Pyongyang's face-off with the international community just days after being slapped with tough UN sanctions.

The order came after Kim monitored what was described as the successful simulated test of the warhead re-entry technology required for a long-range nuclear strike on the US mainland, the North's official KCNA news agency said Tuesday.

According to KCNA, the proposed tests are the result of years of development and "diligent research" into heat-resistant materials and technology. Kim Jong Un guided an "environmental simulation for re-entry by the warhead tip," the report said. 

In order to boost the reliability of the nation's nuclear deterrent still further, Kim said a nuclear warhead explosion test and firings of "several kinds" of ballistic rockets would be carried out "in a short time". 

 "He instructed the relevant section to make pre-arrangement for them to the last detail," KCNA said. The order came days after state media released photos of Kim posing with what was claimed to be a miniaturised nuclear warhead capable of fitting on a ballistic missile.

Meeting with her cabinet ministers on Tuesday, South Korean President Park Geun-Hye said North Korea's endless threats reflected a "sense of crisis" in Pyongyang at its increasing diplomatic and economic isolation.

"If North Korea continues its provocations and confrontation with the international community and does not walk the path of change, it will walk the path of self-destruction," Park said.

Protected by "newly developed heat-resisting material" the warhead was reportedly subjected to thermal flows five times hotter than those associated with ICBM flight. The test was a complete success, the agency said, and provided a "sure guarantee" of the warhead's ability to withstand re-entry -- a major step in the North's push towards a genuine ICBM nuclear strike capability.

South Korea's defence ministry said it was sceptical of the claim. "According to our military analysis, North Korea has not yet secured re-entry technology," ministry spokesman Moon Sang-Gyun told reporters.

North Korea has never tested an ICBM, although it has displayed such a missile, known as the KN-08, during recent mass military parades in Pyongyang.

"It seems highly likely that North Korea is on the verge of conducting a long-range ballistic missile test, involving re-entry," said Chang Yong-Seok, a senior researcher at the Institute for Peace and Unification Studies at Seoul National University "It wants to show that sanctions are not effective and to boost the credibility of its deterrent," Chang said. Hmmm..........Admiral Bill Gortney: "prudent" to assume North Korea could miniaturize a warhead and put it on an ICBM targeting the US.. Read the full story here, more here.

Admiral Bill Gortney: "prudent" to assume North Korea could miniaturize a warhead and put it on an ICBM targeting the US.

Admiral Bill Gortney: "prudent" to assume North Korea could miniaturize a warhead and put it on an ICBM targeting the US. (AlAhram).

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un watched a ballistic missile launch test and ordered the country to improve its nuclear attack capability by conducting more tests, the official KCNA news agency reported on Friday.


The report did not say when the test took place but it was likely referring to North Korea's launch of two short-range missiles on Thursday that flew 500 km (300 miles) and splashed into the sea.

"Dear comrade Kim Jong Un said work ... must be strengthened to improve nuclear attack capability and issued combat tasks to continue nuclear explosion tests to assess the power of newly developed nuclear warheads and tests to improve nuclear attack capability," KCNA said.

The North Korean leader was quoted in state media earlier in the week as saying his country had miniaturized nuclear warheads to mount on ballistic missiles.

Tensions have risen sharply on the Korean peninsula after the North conducted its fourth nuclear test in January and fired a long-range rocket last month leading to the U.N. Security Council to adopt a new sanctions resolution.

Conducting more nuclear tests would be in clear violation of U.N. sanctions which also ban ballistic missile tests, although Pyongyang has rejected them. North Korea has a large stockpile of short-range missiles and is developing long-range and intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs).

South Korea's Unification Ministry spokesman Jeong Joon-hee said: "It's simply rash and thoughtless behavior by someone who has no idea how the world works," when asked about Kim's comments.

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon called on Pyongyang to "cease destabilizing acts," adding that Ban remained "gravely concerned" by the situation.

In China, North Korea's most important economic and diplomatic backer, the country's top newspaper, the People's Daily, urged all sides to be "patient and brave", show goodwill and resume the talks process.

South Korea said it did not believe that North Korea had successfully miniaturized a nuclear warhead or deployed a functioning intercontinental ballistic missile.

The U.S. Defence Department said this week it had seen no evidence that North Korea had succeeded in miniaturizing a warhead.

However, Admiral Bill Gortney, the officer responsible for defending U.S. air space, told a U.S. Senate panel on Thursday it was "prudent" for him to assume North Korea could both miniaturize a warhead and put it on an ICBM that could target the United States.

"Intel community gives it a very low probability of success, but I do not believe the American people want (me) to base my readiness assessment on a low probability," he said.

North Korea: 'We have Mini Nuke Warheads' display photo of Kim Jong Un with a purported mini-nuke.

North Korea: 'We have Mini Nuke Warheads' display photo of Kim Jong Un with a purported mini-nuke.(NApo).

Republic Of — North Korea caused a new stir Wednesday by publicizing a purported mock-up of a key part of a nuclear warhead, with leader Kim Jong Un saying his country has developed miniaturized atomic bombs that can be placed on missiles.

The North’s Rodong Sinmun newspaper carried photos on its front page showing Kim and nuclear scientists standing beside what outside analysts say appears to be a model warhead part — a small, silverish globe with a ballistic missile or a model ballistic missile in the background.

The newspaper said Kim met his nuclear scientists for a briefing on the status of their work and declared he was greatly pleased that warheads had been standardized and miniaturized for use on ballistic missiles.

Information from secretive, authoritarian North Korea is often impossible to confirm and the country’s state media have a history of photo manipulations. But it was the first time the North has publicly displayed its purported nuclear designs, though it remains unclear whether the country has functioning warheads of that size or is simply trying to develop one.

South Korea’s Defence Ministry quickly disputed the North’s claim that is possesses miniaturized warheads. It called the photos and miniaturization claim an “intolerable direct challenge” to the international community. Hmmm......So do our ideological 'Death To America' buddies Iran? Read the full story here.

S. Korea, US launch military drills, North promptly threatens nuclear strikes.

S. Korea, US launch military drills, North promptly threatens nuclear strikes. (AlAhram).

South Korea and the United States kicked off their largest-ever joint military drills on Monday, prompting fresh warnings from North Korea of "indiscriminate" nuclear strikes against Seoul and the US mainland.


The annual exercises always raise tensions on the divided Korean peninsula and the situation is particularly volatile this year, given the North's recent nuclear test and long-range rocket launch and its fury over tough UN sanctions imposed in response.

Participation in the joint drills -- known as Key Resolve and Foal Eagle -- has been bumped up this year to involve 300,000 South Korean and 15,000 US troops, as well as strategic US naval vessels and air force assets.

In a statement issued hours before the exercises began, North Korea's powerful National Defence Commission said it was prepared for an "all-out" military counter-offensive.

"As the joint military exercises to be staged by the enemies are regarded as the most undisguised nuclear war drills aimed to infringe upon the sovereignty of (North Korea), its military counteraction will be more pre-emptive and offensive nuclear strike to cope with them," it said.


The threat came just days after leader Kim Jong-Un ordered the country's nuclear arsenal to be placed on standby, in response to the sanctions resolution adopted last week by the UN Security Council.

The National Defence Commission said plans for what it called a "pre-emptive nuclear strike of justice" had been drawn up by the Supreme Command of the Korean People's Army and ratified by Kim Jong-Un.

The plans would come into operation in the event of "even the slightest military action" by the North's enemies, it said.

"The indiscriminate nuclear strike... will clearly show those keen on aggression and war, the military mettle of (North Korea)," said the statement carried by the North's official KCNA news agency.

Targets would include operational theatres on the Korean peninsula, but also bases on the US mainland and in the rest of the Asia-Pacific region.

"If we push the buttons to annihilate the enemies even right now, all bases of provocations will be reduced to seas in flames and ashes in a moment," the statement added.

Despite a pair of successful long-range rocket launches, most experts believe North Korea is years away from developing a genuine inter-continental ballistic missile (ICBM) capable of reaching the US mainland.

In Seoul, the defence ministry cautioned the North against acting out its bellicose rhetoric.
"If North Korea launches a provocation, our military will respond sternly and mercilessly," ministry spokesman Moon Sang-Gyun told reporters.


Pyongyang has long condemned the Foal Eagle and Key Resolve exercises, which stretch over nearly two months, as provocative rehearsals for invasion, while Seoul and Washington insist they are purely defensive in nature. Read the full story here.

Russian leadership concerned over North Korea's readiness to use nuclear forces.

Russian leadership concerned over North Korea's readiness to use nuclear forces. (Tass).

Kim Jong Un has told North Korea's military to deploy the nuclear warheads so they can be fired at "any moment" and be prepared to launch preemptive attacks against its enemies

The Kremlin is concerned over North Korea’s statements about its readiness to use nuclear forces and urges all states to display restraint, Russian presidential press secretary Dmitry Peskov said on Friday.

"Certainly, it causes rather serious concern and we, of course, are very closely monitoring the situation and hope that all countries of the region and third countries will maintain a balanced and restrained approach in this difficult situation," he said.

Earlier on Friday, North Korea made a statement in response to the UN Security Council resolution on the toughening of sanctions against Pyongyang for its recent nuclear test and a space rocket launch.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has told the country's military to deploy the nuclear warheads so they can be fired at "any moment" and be prepared to launch preemptive attacks against its enemies.

The North’s official Korean Central News Agency said on Friday that the forces hostile to Pyongyang led by the United States have approved "an unprecedented and gangster-like" resolution imposing sanctions on the country, undermining its rights as a sovereign state.

In these circumstances, the agency reported, DPRK leader Kim Jong Un supervised the testing of a new multi-purpose missile launcher, which "will strengthen the striking power of the Korean People’s Army."

North Korea fires long-range rocket posing as a Satellite launch.

North Korea fires long-range rocket posing as a Satellite launch.(RT).

A state TV announcer said that North Korea had successfully placed a satellite in orbit.

The launch was condemned by Japan, South Korea and the US, who have requested an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council later on Sunday.

South Korea says it is to begin discussing with the US the deployment of a missile defence system.
Senior defence official Ryu Je-Seung said if the THAAD missile system - considered one of the most advanced in the world - were deployed it would be only to counter the threat from the North.

Announcing the launch on state TV, a newsreader said it had been ordered by North Korea's leader Kim Jong-un and said the country planned to launch more satellites in the future.

South Korean MPs were told in a behind-closed-doors briefing by the country's spy agency later on Sunday that the launch should be treated as a ballistic missile test as the satellite it put into orbit would be useless.

The payload was presumed to weigh 200kg (440lbs), double the size of the one launched in 2012, but much lighter than the 800-1,500kg usual for a satellite.

They were also reportedly told North Korea has the technology for inter-continental ballistic missiles and is preparing a fifth nuclear test, South Korean news agency Yonhap reported.

The launch was roundly condemned by the international community. US Secretary of State John Kerry called it a "flagrant violation" of UN resolutions and warned of "significant measures to hold the DPRK [North Korea] to account."

China said it "regrets" North Korea's actions but urged "the relevant parties" to "refrain from taking actions that may further escalate tensions on the Korean peninsula".Read the full story here.

Related:

North Korea Can Miniaturize a Nuclear Weapon, and use on ICBM.

North Korea has deployed its new road-mobile KN-08 intercontinental ballistic missile and is capable of mounting a miniaturized nuclear warhead on it, the U.S.’s top homeland security commander said. 

“Our assessment is that they have the ability to put a nuclear weapon on a KN-08 and shoot it at the homeland,” Admiral William Gortney, the head of the U.S. Northern Command, told reporters Tuesday at the Pentagon. “We have not seen them do that” and “we haven’t seen them test the KN-08.” 

He said “yes sir” when asked if the U.S. thinks North Korea has succeeded in the complicated task of miniaturizing a warhead for use on such a missile. North Korea has conducted three nuclear tests since 2006. 


Video - IRAN: Nuclear cooperation between Iran regime & North Korea, NCRI reveals