North Korea Defence Forum

[CCP]

http://www.reuters.com/article/us-northkorea-missiles-idUSKCN10Y2B0

North Korea fired a submarine-launched ballistic missile off its east coast, South Korea's military said on Wednesday, the latest in a string of missile launches by the isolated country in defiance of UN Security Council resolutions.

North Korea test-fired the missile at around 5:30 a.m. (4:30 p.m. ET) near the coastal city of Sinpo, where satellite imagery shows a submarine base to be located, an official at South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff said.

The launch comes two days after rival South Korea and the United States began annual military exercises in the South that North Korea condemns as a preparation for invasion, and has threatened retaliation.

North Korea has become further isolated after a January nuclear test, its fourth, and the launch of a long-range rocket in February brought tightened UN sanctions.

It has launched numerous missiles of various types this year, including one this month that landed in or near Japanese-controlled waters.

Tensions on the Korean peninsula were exacerbated by the recent defection of North Korea's deputy ambassador in London to South Korea, an embarrassing setback to the regime of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.



(Reporting by Ju-min Park and Jack Kim; Writing by Tony Munroe; Editing by James Dalgleish)

 

[Akasa]

North Korea accused of 'maniacal recklessness' after new nuclear test

North Korea has carried out its 5th nuclear test its neighbours confirmed on Friday after an explosion caused an earthquake in the north east of the country.

The US Geological Survey said it had recorded a 5.3 seismic event near the site of the North’s nuclear testing facility.

The news sparked immediate concern in the region, with South Korea announcing that its prime minister would preside over an emergency national security council meeting.

President Park Geun-hye said that the North’s test showed the country’s leader Kim Jong-un was guilty of “maniacal recklessness” in completely ignoring the world’s call to abandon his pursuit of nuclear weapons.

Japan’s prime minister, Shinzo Abe, called for an emergency meeting of the UN security council, pending confirmation that the earthquake was indeed a nuclear test.

Abe said evidence pointed to the possibility that the quake had not occurred naturally. “If it turns out that North Korea has carried out a nuclear test, that is something we cannot tolerate,” he told reporters.

Japan’s top government spokesman, Yoshihide Suga, said: “Given similar cases in the past, we think (the earthquake) may have been a nuclear test.”

The two countries later confirmed that they had determined that the earthquake had been caused by the detonation of a nuclear device.

Japan’s defence ministry has reportedly dispatched aircraft to analyse air samples to see if any radiation could be detected. So far three, three T-4 aircraft, which are usually used to train fighter pilots, have been deployed, sources told Reuters.

CCTV, China’s state broadcaster, reported that the country’s department of environmental protection had launched a level-two emergency response to the suspected test. Nuclear radiation monitoring was being carried out along China’s northeastern border with North Korea it said.

Meanwhile the United States National Security Council spokesperson Ned Price said: “We are aware of seismic activity on the Korean Peninsula in the vicinity of a known North Korean nuclear test site. We are monitoring and continuing to assess the situation in close coordination with our regional partners.”

The seismic event took place at 9.30am local time and occurred at ground level. Naturally occurring earthquakes strike below ground. Its epicentre was 18km east-north-east of Sungjibaegam, the USGS said.

The magnitude of the seismic event would indicate a device with a 20 to 30 kilotonne yield, an analyst said, the largest yield estimate yet of a North Korean nuclear device.

“That’s the largest DPRK test to date, 20-30kt, at least. Not a happy day,” Jeffrey Lewis of the California-based Middlebury Institute of International Studies told Reuters, using the North’s official title of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.

“Yield estimates are always kind of approximate. The point is that it is the biggest one to date unless they revise the yield downward.”

Three days ago the North Korean leader, Kim Jong-un, said his military should continue nuclear weapons development after another round of test-firing of ballistic missiles.

The North Korean KCNA news agency said on Tuesday: “He stressed the need to continue making miraculous achievements in bolstering up the nuclear force one after another in this historic year.”

If confirmed, the timing of Friday’s test is significant as it would coincide with the 68th anniversary of the country’s founding by Kim Il-sung, the grandfather of the current leader, Kim Jong-un.

Two months ago, U.S.-based 38 North, a North Korea monitoring project, said satellite images showed a high level of activity at North Korea’s nuclear test site, called Punggye-ri.

Speculation had intensified that North Korea may conduct a fifth nuclear test after the United States blacklisted Kim on 6 July for human rights abuses.

North Korea conducted its fourth nuclear test in January, resulting in tough new UN sanctions. It has conducted a series of missile tests this year, including a submarine-launched missile.

More follows.

The quick-n'-rough lowdown:

- Time: 00:30:1 UTC (9:00:1 local time), September 8, 2016
- Location: 19 km East-Northeast of Sungjibaegam
- Yield: at least 6 kt (Japanese sources); up to 20-30 kt (US sources)
- Seismological events: 5.3 magnitude earthquake (US Geological Survey)

The test is believed to be part of a series of experiments aimed at miniaturizing North Korea's nuclear warheads, for possible integration with the new KN-11 SLBM and KN-14 ICBM.

Map & schematic of the test location:

 

[alarabi]

(CNN)North Korea conducted a fifth nuclear test Friday, potentially its most powerful yet, South Korean officials said.

Seismic activity, with a magnitude of 5.3, was detected around 9 a.m. local time (8:30 p.m. ET) near Punggye-ri, Kilju County -- the same location as four other tests, the most recent of which was in January.

South Korea condemned the test, saying it was a clear violation of the United Nations Security Council resolution. President Park Geun-hye called Kim Jong Un's regime "fanatically reckless."
"The only thing that Kim Jong Un regime can gain from the nuclear tests is stronger sanctions from the international community and its isolation. Such provocation will eventually hasten its path to self-destruction," she said in a statement.
The blast had the explosive power of 10 kilotons, almost twice as large as the previous test, said Kim Nam-wook, from South Korea's Meteorological Administration.
By comparison, the nuclear bomb dropped on Hiroshima was 15 kilotons.

"We are currently analyzing whether it was a successful test," a South Korean defense ministry official told CNN.
A US official told CNN that it looked like a nuclear test but confirmation would be dependent on seismic readings, location of the seismic event and whether it can be matched to an underground test site.

Sniffer planes
The US Air Force is expected to start flying the WC-135 Constant Phoenix Aircraft in the coming hours to take air samples and see if it can determine a nuclear event occurred. Japan has sent four jets to test for radiation.
Satellite images had shown new activity at the Punggye-ri nuclear test site in recent weeks, according to North Korea monitoring site 38North.
A small number of mining carts could be seen, as well as a new canopy which was designed to hide activity to the site, analysts said.

In January, North Korea claimed it had successfully tested a hydrogen bomb, a move that was condemned by the UN Security Council and led to punitive sanctions on the North Korean regime.

'Absolutely unacceptable'
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe told reporters Friday that if North Korea had conducted another nuclear test it was "absolutely unacceptable."
"We must lodge a strong protest," he said.
Concern has been growing that North Korea is testing weapons at an unprecedented pace this year, said CNN Seoul correspondent Paula Hancocks.
In addition to January's nuclear test, North Korea in March claimed to have miniaturized nuclear warheads and has tested several ballistic missiles, including some launched from a submarine.

Sanctions, including ones targeting Kim Jong Un personally, have had little effect.
Philip Yun, executive director of Ploughshares Fund, a group that advocates nuclear disarmament, said that North Korea had become "increasingly aggressive."
"The reason is because the international community is not taking it seriously. There's no prospect right now for any talks or negotiations. This will only escalate the situation," he said.
Friday is North Korea's national day and the nuclear test also comes just after U.S. President Barack Obama left Asia after attending international summits in China and Laos.
Earlier, the U.S. Geological Survey reported a 5.3 magnitude earthquake in North Korea, but later termed it an explosion. The South Korea Meteorological Administration measured the quake as magnitude 5.0 but said it believed it was artificial.

CNN

It seems NKorea is going for it and no one can prevent them from attacking its enemies.

 

[Place Of Space]

Oh, damn, we all have to eat Korean dust when they run crazy, nobody can controls them now!!!

 

[Imran Khan]

this fat guy always have some drama

 

[terranMarine]

Let me guess, another sanction from the US. The reaction from US is getting so dull and predictable they ain't gonna launch an invasion against a 1 mln army attached to the Dragon
Placing THAAD at the doorstep won't change a thing, DPRK will keep on testing nukes while China and Russia cooperate closely on how to deal with the situation. You can bet China ain't gonna sanction our ally.

 

[alarabi]

China was upset weeks before this insane fat guy conducted his fifth nuclear test because USA decided to deploy THAAD to S.Korea.

China Slams US-South Korea Decision to Deploy THAAD Air Defense System
China expressed strong protest against the United States and South Korea agreement to deploy Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) missile defense system on the Korean peninsula, Chinese Foreign Ministry said Friday.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — The United States has been in discussions with South Korea for several months over the proposed deployment of the THAAD system following Pyongyang's hydrogen bomb test on January 6 and a satellite launch on February 7 which violated the United Nations Security Council resolutions and triggered condemnation from the international community in both cases. "The US and the Republic of Korea, ignoring the clear position of other interested countries, including China, have announced the deployment of the US THAAD missile defense system in South Korea. The Chinese side expresses its extreme dissatisfaction and strong protest in this regard," the press release by the Foreign Ministry read. The ministry added that the move will not help to denuclearize the peninsula or bring peace to the region and called Washington and Seoul to stop the deployment.
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Can't understand why China is upset while an insane guy who is two blocks away conducting nuclear test and threatening his neighbors every morning

 

[艹艹艹]

So what are you going to do, while China dog just barked all night it was just a pain. What happens when mad kim starts firing nukes?

Note the important point, those nukes cant reach the US, they can reach China and are controlled by a guy who shoots people for falling asleep in meetings.

There comes a time when the danger of being bitten by your own dog out weighs the fun you have from it pissing off everyone else.

His goal is to South Korea, Japan or the U.S. military base in South Korea

 

[terranMarine]

So what are you going to do, while China just barked all night it was just a pain. What happens when mad kim starts firing nukes?

Note the important point, those nukes cant reach the US, they can reach China and are controlled by a guy who shoots people for falling asleep in meetings.

There comes a time when the danger of being bitten by your own dog out weighs the fun you have from it pissing off everyone else.

What China is going to do is none of your concern, you should be asking about the one you worship USA what is she going to do about it? You think China is the one who should worry that KIM is gonna fire the nukes at us? How dumb can you get? Just because their missiles can't reach US mainland yet doesn't mean they ain't improving it until it does reach yankee land are you a retard or something. Kim wants to defend itself against American threats and US ain't gonna start another Korean War because it's not the 50s anymore. Today or future warfare between CN-DPRK with the US is gonna end up badly for Americans and South Koreans. They can put more THAAD along the Korean border but that won't matter once DPRK has the capability to launch nuclear missiles from their subs which are capable striking US mainland. It's only a matter of time so you can choose to believe my prediction or keep whining about China and DPRK. I don't give a **** about Western criticism.

 

[Akasa]

China was upset weeks before this insane fat guy conducted his fifth nuclear test because USA decided to deploy THAAD to S.Korea.

China Slams US-South Korea Decision to Deploy THAAD Air Defense System
China expressed strong protest against the United States and South Korea agreement to deploy Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) missile defense system on the Korean peninsula, Chinese Foreign Ministry said Friday.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — The United States has been in discussions with South Korea for several months over the proposed deployment of the THAAD system following Pyongyang's hydrogen bomb test on January 6 and a satellite launch on February 7 which violated the United Nations Security Council resolutions and triggered condemnation from the international community in both cases. "The US and the Republic of Korea, ignoring the clear position of other interested countries, including China, have announced the deployment of the US THAAD missile defense system in South Korea. The Chinese side expresses its extreme dissatisfaction and strong protest in this regard," the press release by the Foreign Ministry read. The ministry added that the move will not help to denuclearize the peninsula or bring peace to the region and called Washington and Seoul to stop the deployment.
------------------------

Can't understand why China is upset while an insane guy who is tow blocks away conducting nuclear test and threatening his neighbors every morning

The Chinese aren't so riled over the THAAD missile itself as they are the AN/TPY-2 radar that accompanies the system. The radar would allow US forces to track multiple Chinese aerial assets, civilian or otherwise, from a range of approximately 1000 km and with a very high degree of precision. This intelligence jackpot may subsequently reveal, for instance, the flight schedules, deployed quantity, and home bases of specific military aircraft, in addition to some of their capabilities.

It's pretty clear as to why the Chinese view this as a threat.

 

[gambit]

His goal is to South Korea, Japan or the U.S. military base in South Korea

Here is something for your immature mind to think about: There is no way NKR can defeat and take over SKR.

In your immaturity, you think that inflicting damages equals to defeat. You are wrong. But what else can we expect from someone who have never been in the military ?

If NKR attack SKR, especially with a nuclear strike, the US and JPN will respond. The NKRean military will be destroyed, not merely defeated. China will be facing a refugee crisis for which she has no appetite. China will be forced to divert all her attention and resources in trying to contain that refugee crisis. Her economy will be strained.

The funny part is that China will not fight the US but will turn against NKR. The stability between the two Koreas have benefited China in intangible but measurable ways. If NKR can serve as a geopolitical buffer between the US and China, then it is best if NKR is a stable and controlled country to be that buffer zone.

That is what the average NKRean trooper look like compares to his SKRean and US counterparts. That fight is not going to last very long.

 

[AZADPAKISTAN2009]

I have been following North Korean soldier program and I have to say , never underestimate the opponent

All becasue Van Dam thought he had it all figured out

 

[gambit]

I have been following North Korean soldier program and I have to say , never underestimate the opponent

Yeah...That is the extent of your intellectual contribution to this discussion.

You posted a still from a crappy martial art movie to convince us of what a NKRean soldier look like.

 

[gambit]

Looks like NKR is one step closer to becoming a real territory of China.

 

[terranMarine]

@gambit
War are fought with guns and rifles not with fists, your trolling has failed by putting a short NK soldier between two taller enemies. When will you ever grow up old man?