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Subscribe to RSSThe communist nation of North Korea threatened this morning to launch a pre-emptive strike, after accusing the United States of using military drills in South Korea as preparation for its own nuclear strike.
The United Nations Security Council slapped new sanctions on North Korea over its latest nuclear test hours after Pyongyang threatened to exercise its "right to a pre-emptive nuclear attack" Thursday.
"Now that the U.S. is set to light a fuse for a nuclear war, the revolutionary armed forces of the DPRK will exercise the right to a pre-emptive nuclear attack to destroy the strongholds of the aggressors and to defend the supreme interests of the country," the North's foreign ministry spokesman said in a statement carried by the official KCNA news agency. "The U.S. is massively deploying armed forces for aggression, including nuclear carrier task force and strategic bombers, enough to fight a nuclear war under the smokescreen of 'annual drills'."
Later on Thursday, the U.N. Security Council passed sanctions aimed at North Korea's financial transactions and illicit cargo shipments, and its criminal activities such as drugs and counterfeiting.
After the vote, Susan Rice, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, said that the "entire world stands united in our commitment to the de-nuclearization of the Korean peninsula and in our demand that North Korea complies with its international obligations."
White House spokesman Jay Carney addresses reported nuclear threats made by North Korea on Thursday.
The vote was passed unanimously by the 15 members of the Security Council, including China, the North's one major diplomatic ally.
China’s ambassador to the U.N., Li Baodong, said China hoped to see the resumption of diplomacy to try to reduce tensions.
"We need wisdom, we need persistence, perseverance, we need teamwork … to bring down the heat," Li said. "This is our focus."
South Korea’s envoy Kim Sook said North Korea choosing the wrong path could lead to its "self-destruction."
"We all have seen (today's) announcement coming out of Pyongyang, which is very hostile," he said.
Responding to questions about Pyongyang's threat to carry out a pre-emptive nuclear attack, White House spokesman Jay Carney said Thursday that "DPRK will achieve nothing by threats or provocations, which will only further isolate North Korea and undermine international efforts to achieve peace and stability," in the region. He added: "I can tell you that the United States is fully capable of defending against any North Korean ballistic missile attack."
KCNA via EPA
North Korean soldiers cheer during combat training at an undisclosed location on Wednesday.
Earlier, a spokesman for South Korea's defense ministry told Reuters that the military was "watching the North's activities and stepping up readiness."
Saber-rattling?
On Wednesday, the South Korean military said it would strike back at North Korea and target its top leadership if Pyongyang attacks.
Tensions have ratcheted higher across the Korean Peninsula since the North, under youthful leader Kim Jong Un who took office just over a year ago after the death of his father, launched a long-range rocket last December. He followed this with a third nuclear test on February 12.
Earlier in the week, Pyongyang threatened to end the 60-year truce that ended the Korean war.
Angus Walker, a Beijing-based correspondent with NBC News' partner ITV News, said the current consensus was that North Korea did not have a missile that was capable of carrying a nuclear warhead.
"There is always a lot of saber-rattling when the U.S. and South Korea stage large-scale military exercises," he said.
North Korea continues military drills and exercises in support of a top general's threat to back military action against South Korea and the United States. NBCNews.com's Dara Brown reports.
The North does have smaller missiles, as seen during military parades, and South Korea's capital Seoul is within artillery range.
While the North has in the past threatened to hit Seoul with a "rain of fire," claiming it can launch 250,000 artillery shells in an hour at the South Korean capital, the reality is that those artillery batteries could be destroyed very quickly, Walker said.
War-game scenarios have suggested that a war on the peninsula would be over quickly, with the North under U.S. and South Korean control within 24 hours, he said.
However, Walker suggested the nightmare scenarios are that the North could somehow get a truck-loaded device into the South or launch a "dirty bomb" in an artillery shell.
Earlier this week, the Korea Economic Institute warned that Pyongyang could "certainly inflict serious damage along the Southern side of the [demilitarized zone] in the event of a surprise attack" using artillery.
U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Susan Rice describes approved sanctions against North Korea relating to the country's latest nuclear test.
It added:
Taken together, North Korea’s forward deployed long-range artillery could launch as many as 20,000 shells an hour at downtown Seoul ... However, it is important to underscore that these are best-case figures (from North Korea’s military point of view) and in all reality, performance and frequency of the bombardment would be much lower than the numbers detailed above.
...300 artillery pieces in direct range of Seoul is of course a serious concern for allied commanders. A “sea of fire” might not be the result in case of their use, but it is evident that tens of thousands of civilians could die and even more injured if they were used in an indiscriminate way.
The Korea Economic Institute also pointed out that North Korea "reportedly has chemical munitions" that could be fired using artillery. In 2011, Pyongyang reportedly had 1.2 military personnel at its disposal.
The youngest son of Kim Jong Il succeeded his late father in 2011, becoming the third member of his family to rule the unpredictable and reclusive communist state.
Next steps
Seoul-based analyst Daniel Pinkston, North East Asia deputy project director with the International Crisis Group, said North Korea’s comments were "a little bit more serious" than its usual hostile rhetoric. He said Pyongyang appeared to see the moves to impose further sanctions on North Korea as similar to the preludes to the U.S.-led invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq.
Pinkston said President Barack Obama should respond by stressing there was no intention to invade North Korea. But he also said the president should warn North Korea that if it "were ever to use nuclear weapons it would be your complete destruction and all the leadership would perish."
Pinkston said it would be suicide for North Korea to launch a nuclear attack, and doubted it would do so. But he added "some kind of miscalculation" was always possible.
He said the U.S. had to stay in a diplomatic "Goldilocks" zone: It had to appear strong to deter North Korean aggression, but not so strong that the regime decided an attack was imminent.
"I think displaying a formidable amount of force that’s credible and can impose huge costs on them, I think that gets their attention and they are more likely to behave themselves," Pinkston said.
NBC News staff writer Kari Huus, Reuters and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Related:
Huge military exercise highlights 'rebalancing of US policy toward Asia'
North Korea's propaganda poets stay true to their muse despite world's laughter
Full North Korea coverage from NBC News
This story was originally published on Thu Mar 7, 2013 4:36 AM EST
Leave a Comment:
While N Korea shoots off their mouth AGAIN, I wonder what Iran is up to?
I'm starting to think N Korea is the smoke screen.....
What did Dennis Rodman, stir up when he visited North Korea? lol
I don't care what N. Korea does or says. I'm surprised the White House hasn't sent troops there to look for the Taliban. I'm worried what's going on in this country. F**k the rest of the world.
Sounds like oblamo needs to send his home boy, Rodman back for a second round of talks
with N. Korea...lol
you can eat any thing made of meat. dogs were food probably long before they were friends. and just because we have wonderfull pet dogs doesnt mean other cultures view them differently its no more abuse than raising cows to eat just because you have one for a friend. as far as the nuclear thing @!$%# North Korea let em, they will be done within a few days and then we will have no more worry about them because they will just be a radioactive wasteland.
It's been 70 years since the US dropped the first nuclear bomb. I fear our country has been busy in that time coming up with even more lethal, hideous weapons that have pinpoint accuracy. North Korea should be very careful with their threats, they may get swatted like the pesky flies that they are. Why can't they just talk with their perceived enemies? They don't need their feeble nuclear weapons that probably would fail, they need food, clothing, shelter, oops, those are needs of the people, not the ruling party. I read a story a while back where Koreans were eating grass because that's all they could get. There is no nutritional value in grass. Any government that would treat its people like that deserves to be blown away.
It's past time China smack these fools down before they have another war at their front door!
This is media/government bull@!$%#! Okay, let's instill fear into the American Citizens so our government can pick a fight with N. Korea for their own political advantage. This is going to be another cover up like 9/11. Our government let it happen and wanted it to happen, just like they're provoking N. Korea. Absolutely insane! There's no winners here and no good guys. Damnit...
That's what happens when you don't finnish the job and make movies instead
Oh my what would all you dumb @sses do when we run out of Hyunda's. Most of the parts are made in North Korea (they have workers there for less thena dollar a day wages) They ship that crap over here and it gets assembled in factories in the US,But the "PROFITS" go back to South Korea,,Not here. Same with the rest of those "rice cars" Keep sending that money people. I am sure your jids and grand kids will be taught how to speak the lingo real quick,,when they take over.
First, if they were selling cars in the US with North Korean parts they would not be covered under the US/South Korea trade agreements and would be far more expensive than they are, second, what did we do before there were Hyundais? I'm sorry but Hyundai is not the only car sold in the US and in fact has only about 5 percent of the US market.
So it is also your assertion that Toyota has major production capability in North Korea? I think you need to learn the difference between "China", "Taiwan", "North Korea", "South Korea", and "Japan".
Oh I know the difference.Maybe you should do more reading. It is simple type in what you want to know and boom,you start learning. You talk about trade agreemets? WTF You really think our "G" has kept track of it. Drin k some more kool-aid.
Give him cancer
That was Rodman's real mission, but it will take some time......
There's a misunderstanding. The DPRK's nuclear weapons are a deterrent from being colonized by another country again. The Korean peninsula was colonized by Japan from 1910-1945.
your point....other then it was China not NK
What "was China and not NK"? Korea was annexed by Japan in 1910. It took Japan longer to digest most of China.
However the notion that North Korea needs nuclear weapons to avoid being "colonized" is crap. If anybody wanted to colonize the place they would have already done it. China could but doesn't want to. The US and South Korea could but don't want to. Japan doesn't even have an army anymore. So where's the threat other than in their fearless leader's paranoid fantasies?
N.Korea wants food money and other things. Plus they always go off the cliff with talk when the joint exercises occur between the US and S. Korea. But I have read several reports that indicate that Iran is helping them with their nuke program. The thing about that is Iran is smart enough not to do it so maybe they go offer the lunatic in the North what he needs to do it. I just hope the N. Korea leaders understand that the US is not the one they have to worry about. China can and will if need be clean out North Korea. China will not bother with the UN before they do it. As for the dog that goes back along way in Asia. It is much like us killing and eating pigs cows chickens etc. We find it distasteful because we have them as pets not as a food source. And it occurs across Asia not just China. Just not as common as it once was but still there are some that do still like it.
Seems the issue is "no more sports cars and yachts" for North Korea. That of course in their minds warrants a nuclear response. Mighty big of China to go along with no more imports of Yachts for North Korea. That's really really serious. That's HUGE/
Kim Uns army must need food again. It sure isn`t for his people.
So maybe that parade for Hillary Clinton was bit premature?
They are some Brain washed Americans. You can bet your bottom dollars the US Government is behind all this!
That's to keep your minds occupied so the US Government can really lay the shaft to people.
What fools! LMAO
More @!$%# talk from the piggy little boy leader? Just ignore his ass, and he will go away! The only thing N. Korea wants, is attention! Send them a binkie, and forget about them.
@!$%# send him twinkies they taste like metal tell him it's uranium and he'll send them back
Eh... it's time to start over, yea, go ahead blow it up.... see you next life.
So, North Korea threatens us directly with a pre-emptive nuclear strike(s), and our response is, "No more yachts for you, you naughty naughty boy you." And, China agrees, no more yachts. That's HUGE. Maybe Kerry can take credit for that. He deserves another Silver Star. This is more worthy of a medal for him than the ingrown toenail he had which was of course certainly a porttrayal of his valor in combat.
Ugh! they build and sell the yachts, we buy (read )
No, you read;
"The U.N. Security Council measures expected to be approved later on Thursday would ban the sale of items coveted by North Korea's elite, like racing cars and yachts, a diplomat told Reuters on condition of anonymity."
Clearly this Kim Jong 11 is retarded and to the point he should be institutionalized. It's a good thing his father didn't pass on anymore of his genes on to any other misfits.
I hope they nuke cali. That would help eliminate a ton of progressive socialists. but in all seriousness this is what happens when your military tries to march the globe and interfere with everyone elses business.
You are a treasonous pos.
Thrill,,,,,,,,I do agree 100% hit California and wipe out 20 million Mexicans at one shot!
Where are the black ops when needed?
they are busy kidnapping, torturing and killing Afghans.
elit5hian, They are busey gathering guns for DHS to use on us.
@Thrill,
Good! When they are done killing those dogs, they can get started on the chubby child that is Kim J. Un.
Afghans have killed many Americans too. So don't cry me your river on Afghans. When is the last time you fought for your country?
Enough said by these fk heads! When our we going to get a president with some balls? Bush and now Obamie are cowards in my view! Mommas boy's, girlymen, We are now on the last hour of mankind and if we do not do something here soon, North Korea will hit us with a nuke! The same goes for Iran! It is time to wipe the earth clean of these two AZZ holes now!
Listen you fat little commie. Even though the cajones have been checked at the door of the White House, even Obama would respond to a threat by North Korea. So, fatazz, shut up and continue waving from the grandstand while watching your little gnats march in lockstep.