In a sharp rebuke to a recent United States subcritical nuclear test, North Korea has signalled its intention to take measures to bolster its nuclear deterrence capabilities. The test, conducted in Nevada, has been identified by the US as a step to acquire “essential data” about the current status of its nuclear warheads. North Korea has decried the move, with an unnamed spokesman from the North’s foreign ministry accusing the US of not being qualified to speak about nuclear threats from other nations.
Amid the escalating tensions, North Korea has conducted its largest missile test since 2017, firing a suspected intermediate-range ballistic missile into space. This move, alongside a spate of other missile tests, has deepened the concerns of the United States and its allies about the possible resumption of nuclear testing by Pyongyang. The US has consistently urged North Korea to join direct talks without preconditions, but such proposals have been met with resistance.
The North Korean response follows a pattern of escalating its military capabilities in the face of what it perceives as provocations or threats from the US and its allies. “To cope with the strategic instability in the region and the rest of the world caused by the U.S. unilateral action, (we) cannot but reconsider the measures necessary for the improvement of the overall nuclear deterrence posture within the range of its vested sovereign right and possible options,” according to the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).
Pyongyang’s stance on its nuclear program has been clear, with North Korea enshrining its nuclear power status in its constitution and officials from Seoul and Washington noting that the country is prepared for a seventh nuclear test at any moment. North Korea has affirmed that it will not tolerate what it sees as a “creation of strategic imbalance and security vacuum” on the Korean Peninsula and has vowed to “firmly defend its security, rights, and interests” against US nuclear threats.
Relevant articles:
– N. Korea slams US subcritical nuclear test, vows measures to bolster nuclear deterrence , 코리아타임스, 05/20/2024
– U.S. worried North Korea could return to nuclear and ICBM tests, urges dialogue, Yahoo Canada Shine On, 05/20/2024
– North Korea to boost nuclear deterrence after US ‘subcritical’ test: Report, Hindustan Times, 05/19/2024
– North Korea test-fires suspected missiles as Kim Jong Un’s sister denies supplying weapons to Russia, NBC News, 05/17/2024
– South Korean military says North Korea test-fired ‘ballistic missiles’, Al Jazeera English, 05/17/2024
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