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Here's what's driving North Korea's nuclear program — and it might be more than self-defense /snip One longtime analyst of the secretive country’s murky ideology says it’s become clear that North Korea’s rulers have come to consider nuclear capability not just a means of defense, but the only way of achieving their most important goal: to rid South Korea of U.S. troops, and reunite the Korean peninsula on their own terms. “North Korea is a radical nationalist state and it’s committed to anything that anybody in North Korea’s position would be — which is the reunification of the [Korean] race,...

Eyeing North Korea, Donald Trump holds on to bargaining chip with China US president marks 100 days in office with rally, saying now is not the time to brand Beijing a currency manipulator as they deal with North Korea US President Donald Trump is holding on to his threat to label China as a currency manipulator as a bargaining chip to deal with North Korea, analysts say, even though Beijing may not play ball. Going back to his core support base in a campaign-style rally in Pennsylvania to mark his first 100 days in the White House, Trump said now...

CIA director in S. Korea for consultations on N. Korea: report SEOUL, May 1 (Yonhap) -- Mike Pompeo, director of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), is on an unannounced visit to South Korea for discussions on North Korea, news reports here said Monday. He arrived at the Osan Air Base south of Seoul on Saturday, about 12 hours after the North fired a ballistic missile that apparently broke up in mid-air, according to the Kookmin Ilbo. He is scheduled to stay in Seoul until Tuesday, the publication added, citing "key officials in the political circles." Another daily, the Chosun Ilbo,...

Russia's Air Defense on High Alert After N Korean Missile Launch - Top Lawmaker Another ballistic missile launch carried out by Pyongyang has increased the probability of a military conflict in the region, Victor Ozerov, the chairman of the Russian upper house of parliament’s committee on defense and security, told Sputnik Saturday. MOSCOW (Sputnik) — North Korea is believed to have launched a KN-17 intermediate ballistic missile in the early hours of Saturday from a site north of Pyongyang. Japan, South Korea and the United States said the test appeared to have failed after the missile broke up within North...

North Korea now threatens to sink US Navy's nuclear-powered submarine USS Michigan The Ohio-class submarine is stationed in the South Korean port of Busan. North Korea has issued a fresh threat to sink the US Navy's nuclear-powered submarine which is currently stationed in the Korean peninsula waters. Pyongyang said the vessel would be turned into an "underwater ghost". USS Michigan, armed with cruise missiles, arrived at the South Korean port of Busan on 25 April to take part in "routine" exercises. The Ohio-class submarine is being joined by a large fleet of the US Navy's warships led by the supercarrier...

Chinese paper mocks North Korea's tech prowess after failed ballistic missile launch China's semi-official Global Times newspaper criticized an ongoing "game of chicken" between North Korea and Washington but also knocked Pyongyang's tech talents. Early Saturday, the reclusive communist nation launched yet another missile, presumably in a new display of force amid a verbal war of words with President Donald Trump. However, the missile exploded seconds after liftoff, and officials said the failed test involved a short-range, non-nuclear missile able to hit Seoul but not Japan. "The test's failure shows that the country's missile technology is not mature, and that...

China must be ready for worsened NK ties Source:Global Times Published: 2017/4/27 23:33:41 That China strictly implements the UN Security Council resolutions that sanction North Korea is seen by all. If Pyongyang continues with its nuclear and missile tests, China is bound to support more harsh resolutions on this country. The relationship between China and North Korea has already been severely affected. Since Kim Jong-un became the leader of North Korea, there have been no leadership meetings between the two sides. Although they maintain smooth diplomatic communication, strategic mutual trust between the two is scarce. As the situation in the...

Trump criticizes N.Korean missile launch US President Donald Trump has criticized North Korea for its latest ballistic missile launch. Trump took to Twitter on Friday, saying "North Korea disrespected the wishes of China & its highly respected President when it launched, though unsuccessfully, a missile today. Bad!" Trump has repeatedly expressed the hope that China would play a role in urging North Korea to exercise self-restraint. The US Pacific Command says Pyongyang launched the missile from Bukchang in South Pyongan Province at around 5:30 AM on Saturday Seoul Time. It adds that the missile did not leave North Korean territory,...

N. Korea official: U.S. efforts to rid nukes a ‘wild dream’ North Korea’s deputy U.N. ambassador said Friday that U.S. efforts to get rid of his country’s nuclear weapons through military threats and sanctions are “a wild dream.”

North Korea turns to Southeast Asian nations for help to stop 'nuclear holocaust North Korea has appealed to neighbouring nations for support in what it says is its ongoing campaign to prevent what could be a "nuclear holocaust". North Korean Foreign Minister Ri Yong-ho warned the situation on the Korean peninsula was "reaching the point of war" due to US actions in a letter to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations' secretary general. The letter criticised the length of the US-South Korean military exercises and urged the ASEAN chief to notify the 10 member nations' foreign ministers on the "grave...

U.S. President Donald Trump said on Thursday a major conflict with North Korea is possible in the standoff over its nuclear and missile programs, but he would prefer a diplomatic outcome to the dispute. "There is a chance that we could end up having a major, major conflict with North Korea. Absolutely," Trump told Reuters in an Oval Office interview ahead of his 100th day in office on Saturday. Nonetheless, Trump said he wanted to peacefully resolve a crisis that has bedeviled multiple U.S. presidents, a path that he and his administration are emphasizing by preparing a variety of new...

North Korea tells Donald Trump: We will never stop nuclear tests if you don't back off Nick Reilly Yahoo News UKApril 26, 2017 North Korea has said it won’t stop nuclear tests while the US continues with what it perceives as acts of aggression. In a retaliation to a White House statement outlining how the US will apply economic and diplomatic pressure on North Korea to dismantle its nuclear weapons programme, a Pyongyang official said the country would not be influenced by outside events. “As long as America continues its hostile acts of aggression, we will never stop nuclear and...

US test-fires ICBM traveling 4,000 miles to South Pacific Published April 26, 2017 Fox News The U.S. Air Force test-fired an intercontinental ballistic missile which traveled over 4,000 miles before splashing down in the South Pacific after launching early Wednesday from a base in California. The nuclear-capable missile was unarmed, according to the Air Force, and comes amid increasing tensions on the Korean Peninsula. The Minuteman III missile blasted off at 12:03 a.m. Wednesday from Vandenberg Air Force Base, 130 miles northwest of Los Angeles.

Chinese Troop Deployment at Sino-N. Korean Border (status) These reports are from Chinese and Japanese media. Since I have no time, I will just translate titles and key points. I will paste the entire text of original articles for those who are interested in details and could read them. It is up to you to make judgment on how credible they are. I heard some folks at DoD are screaming about this kind of articles. From CNA News and Information Center for Human Rights & Democracy in Hong Kong: Korean Peninsula Tense, China's Northern Military District on level 1 alertKey...

NYT: N. Korea's Nuclear Arsenal to Hit 50 by the End of Trump's Term The New York Times says the Trump administration’s urgency in dealing with the North Korean nuclear crisis reflects concerns about the rapid advances in the North’s weapons programs. The Times report Monday pointed to expert studies and classified intelligence reports that conclude Pyongyang is capable of producing a nuclear bomb every six or seven weeks. UN investigators reportedly found evidence that the North’s factories had succeeded in producing lithium 6, a rare ingredient needed for Pyongyang's push to make a hydrogen bomb. The report says that...

Japan gets real: what to do when the 10-minute missile warning comes BY ERIC JOHNSTON STAFF WRITER APR 24, 2017 OSAKA – With fears growing that North Korea could hold a nuclear or missile test as early as Tuesday, municipalities and prefectures nationwide are responding to a government request to provide information on what to do in the event Japan is targeted. The moves come as the Cabinet Secretariat Civil Protection Portal Site on what to do in case of a North Korean missile attack has seen a surge to about 2.6 million views this month from 450,000 in March,...

Report: Nuclear-powered USS Michigan to arrive in South Korea April 24 (UPI) -- A nuclear-powered U.S. submarine is to arrive at the South Korean port city of Busan on Tuesday, the same day North Korea is expected to commemorate the 85th anniversary of the founding of the Korean People's Army. The USS Michigan, the second Ohio-class nuclear-powered guided missile submarine in the U.S. Navy, is to make a visit to South Korea to send a strong message of warning to Pyongyang, South Korean newspaper Donga Ilbo reported Monday. The U.S. supercarrier Carl Vinson is also expected to arrive near the...

NK state media's broadside won’t impact China policy The Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) published a commentary on Friday criticizing China, although without naming it, for "dancing to the tune of" the US' North Korean policy. Some emotional statements in the article expressed Pyongyang's determination to go down the nuclear path. The most provocative sentence that attracted worldwide attention in the commentary is that "if the country keeps applying economic sanctions on the DPRK … it should get itself ready to face the catastrophic consequences in the relations with the DPRK." This is the second time North Korean state media...

Western spy chiefs head for the hills Spy chiefs from the West’s intelligence alliance have arrived at a mountain resort in New Zealand for a secret strategy session expected to be dominated by North Korea’s nuclear ambitions. An unmarked Gulfstream corporate jet — identified by its US registration as being operated by the CIA — touched down in Queenstown yesterday. It was believed to be carrying Mike Pompeo, the agency’s director. A second Gulfstream jet delivered James Comey, the FBI director.

KING OF THE PORKIES Kim Jong-un all smiles on visit to pig processing plant – as we run down the tubby tyrant’s most outrageous lies The North Korean leader visited the Thaechon Pig Farm of the Korean People's Army in a show of support to his troops By Jon Lockett 23rd April 2017, 11:28 am Updated: 23rd April 2017, 11:57 am KIM Jong-un was all smiles when he was pictured at a pig processing plant on one of his country’s many military bases. The North Korean Leader visited the Thaechon Pig Farm of the Air and Anti-Air Force of the...