Freaking lovely: North Korea confirms nuclear bomb test

[FBM]

http://edition.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/asiap ... index.html

SEOUL, South Korea (CNN) -- North Korea has conducted its second nuclear bomb test, the country's state news agency announced Monday.


This screen grab from North Korean television on April 9 shows leader Kim Jong-Il in Pyongyang.

The confirmation came little more than an hour after the U.S. Geological Survey reported a magnitude 4.7 seismic disturbance at the site of North Korea's first nuclear test in October 2006. The North Korea's Korean Central News Agency said Monday's test was conducted "as part of the measures to bolster up its nuclear deterrent for self-defense in every way."

In Seoul, South Korean President Lee Myung-Bak's office said the country was investigating the reported test and would hold an emergency meeting of its national security council.

And in Tokyo, Prime Minister Taro Aso's office said it has set up a special task force to look into the test and how to respond.

There was no immediate response from Washington.

"The current nuclear test was safely conducted on a new higher level in terms of its explosive power and technology of its control and the results of the test helped satisfactorily settle the scientific and technological problems arising in further increasing the power of nuclear weapons and steadily developing nuclear technology," KCNA announced.

There was no immediate information on the yield of the weapon used. But the first North Korean test produced, according to U.S. intelligence estimates, an explosion equal to less than 1,000 tons of TNT -- a fraction of the size of the bombs the United States dropped on Japan at the end of World War II. Watch South Korea's initial reaction to North Korea's nuclear test »

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North Korea had threatened to conduct a second bomb test after the U.N. Security Council criticized Pyongyang's April 5 test of a long-range rocket. The isolated Stalinist state expelled international inspectors from its nuclear sites and announced plans to restart the reactor that produces plutonium for its nuclear weapons.

In June 2008, North Korea acknowledged producing roughly 40 kilograms of enriched plutonium -- enough for about seven nuclear bombs.

The following month, negotiators reached agreement with Pyongyang on a timetable for North Korea to resume disabling its nuclear facilities. But the reclusive communist state balked at the deal, demanding the United States first take it off its list of state sponsors of terrorism.

The Bush administration lifted that designation in October, but plans to push for an agreement allowing the other parties to check whether Pyongyang has revealed all of its nuclear secrets stalled.

The latest test comes less than three weeks after the United States announced a new diplomatic effort to restart the stalled North Korean nuclear talks. The Obama administration's designated point person on North Korea, Stephen Bosworth, visited the region for talks with China, South Korea, Japan and Russia -- the other participants in the six-party talks.


The test also comes two days after former South Korean President Roh Moo-Hyun, who'd sought improved relations with North Korea during his 2003-2008 tenure, committed suicide. Just before he left the presidency, Roh became the first South Korean leader to cross the demilitarized zone and meet with North Korean leader Kim Jong Il.

Roh's successor, Lee, takes a harder line on the north and has so far not continued Roh's efforts.
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CNN's Sohn Jie-ae contributed to this report.

[al-rawandi]

http://edition.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/asiap ... index.html

SEOUL, South Korea (CNN) -- North Korea has conducted its second nuclear bomb test, the country's state news agency announced Monday.


This screen grab from North Korean television on April 9 shows leader Kim Jong-Il in Pyongyang.

The confirmation came little more than an hour after the U.S. Geological Survey reported a magnitude 4.7 seismic disturbance at the site of North Korea's first nuclear test in October 2006. The North Korea's Korean Central News Agency said Monday's test was conducted "as part of the measures to bolster up its nuclear deterrent for self-defense in every way."

In Seoul, South Korean President Lee Myung-Bak's office said the country was investigating the reported test and would hold an emergency meeting of its national security council.

And in Tokyo, Prime Minister Taro Aso's office said it has set up a special task force to look into the test and how to respond.

There was no immediate response from Washington.

"The current nuclear test was safely conducted on a new higher level in terms of its explosive power and technology of its control and the results of the test helped satisfactorily settle the scientific and technological problems arising in further increasing the power of nuclear weapons and steadily developing nuclear technology," KCNA announced.

There was no immediate information on the yield of the weapon used. But the first North Korean test produced, according to U.S. intelligence estimates, an explosion equal to less than 1,000 tons of TNT -- a fraction of the size of the bombs the United States dropped on Japan at the end of World War II. Watch South Korea's initial reaction to North Korea's nuclear test »

Don't Miss
Former S. Korean President Roh commits suicide
Special: North Korea
North Korea had threatened to conduct a second bomb test after the U.N. Security Council criticized Pyongyang's April 5 test of a long-range rocket. The isolated Stalinist state expelled international inspectors from its nuclear sites and announced plans to restart the reactor that produces plutonium for its nuclear weapons.

In June 2008, North Korea acknowledged producing roughly 40 kilograms of enriched plutonium -- enough for about seven nuclear bombs.

The following month, negotiators reached agreement with Pyongyang on a timetable for North Korea to resume disabling its nuclear facilities. But the reclusive communist state balked at the deal, demanding the United States first take it off its list of state sponsors of terrorism.

The Bush administration lifted that designation in October, but plans to push for an agreement allowing the other parties to check whether Pyongyang has revealed all of its nuclear secrets stalled.

The latest test comes less than three weeks after the United States announced a new diplomatic effort to restart the stalled North Korean nuclear talks. The Obama administration's designated point person on North Korea, Stephen Bosworth, visited the region for talks with China, South Korea, Japan and Russia -- the other participants in the six-party talks.


The test also comes two days after former South Korean President Roh Moo-Hyun, who'd sought improved relations with North Korea during his 2003-2008 tenure, committed suicide. Just before he left the presidency, Roh became the first South Korean leader to cross the demilitarized zone and meet with North Korean leader Kim Jong Il.

Roh's successor, Lee, takes a harder line on the north and has so far not continued Roh's efforts.
E-mail to a friend
Share this on:
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Facebook

Twitter

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CNN's Sohn Jie-ae contributed to this report.

We can only hope Kim Jong Il strokes out and dies and that he doesn't have a chance to use his secret weapon.... Alec Baldwin!

Film Actor's Guild (FAG)

"Ahhh Hans Brix, why you bustin by barrs Hans Brix"

[FBM]

He just pulls crap like this when he ronery. So ronery.

[Xamonas Chegwé]

I'd make that an extended trip to Japan if I were you.

[FBM]

I'd make that an extended trip to Japan if I were you.

Yeah, that move to another country that I'm always contemplating has been pushed up a notch. Japan and Thailand aren't quite to nuke-y.

[JimC]

I'd make that an extended trip to Japan if I were you.

Right to another main target for the missile strikes...

FBM, make it Melbourne, his puny missiles cannot reach the sporting, cultural and intellectual capital of the world...

[Achtland]

ha ha

kim is so close to death it is not funny, possiblily. why is he trying to piss off the states? if i were him i would release power now before the american launch operation friendly fire on his dirt poor country

[FBM]

ha ha

kim is so close to death it is not funny, possiblily. why is he trying to piss off the states? if i were him i would release power now before the american launch operation friendly fire on his dirt poor country

Views differ as to the desirability of that at the present...

If more Western leaders would study The Art of War http://www.online-literature.com/suntzu/artofwar/ by Sun Tzu, they would be able to understand and deal with this guy a lot more productively. Western-style carrot-and-stick stuff is just an insult to him and only makes the situation worse, as history has shown.

[Xamonas Chegwé]

Latest news is they've been testing more short-range missiles as well!


http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-p ... 067711.stm

[AshtonBlack]

Nuke + SSBM = Fun! Fun! Fun!

Yeah, I'd GTFO of the area!

[FBM]

Latest news is they've been testing more short-range missiles as well!


http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-p ... 067711.stm

Yeah, one of the local (conservative) papers said it's a return to the Cold War relationship that they had almost dug themselves out of.

[Xamonas Chegwé]

And now the North says it is no longer bound by the armistice of 1953 in retaliation to the South's joining in sanctions. Grab that towel and stick your thumb out!

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-p ... 069457.stm

[charlou]

The derail posts have been split to a new thread in The Pub: http://rationalia.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=2285 (must be logged in to view)

[al-rawandi]

He just pulls crap like this when he ronery. So ronery.

"Ahhh I have the Firm Actors Guird"


"Matt Damon"

[FBM]

And now the North says it is no longer bound by the armistice of 1953 in retaliation to the South's joining in sanctions. Grab that towel and stick your thumb out!

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-p ... 069457.stm

My girlfriend told me yesterday that all the male students on campus are worried that they're about to be called up for military duty.