Tag: nuclear test

The data inconclusive, but I would not be surprised if the North Koreans did in fact test some hydrogen bomb components:

North Koreans who contributed to the alleged success of a hydrogen bomb test board the luxurious cruise ship “Rainbow” in this photo published by the country’s official daily Rodong Sinmun on Jan. 14, 2016. Reports said people who contributed to the success, ranging from scientists to laborers, were allowed to visit Pyongyang on Jan. 8-13 for a tour of landmarks and to enjoy rest aboard the cruise ship and at a waterpark. North Korea carried out the nuclear test on Jan. 6, but experts dispute that it involved a hydrogen bomb as asserted by Pyongyang. (Yonhap)

https://twitter.com/RimjingangNK/status/687929976654544896

Global Voices has an interesting article posted that shows a variety of reactions from Chinese Internet users in regards to North Korea’s recent nuclear test.  It seems at least some people in China are beginning to realize what a danger North Korea is to not only the ROK, US and Japan, but China now as well:

Instead of condemning the nuclear test, Beijing took a more moderate stance, saying it “firmly opposes” the test and urged North Korea to “remain committed to its denuclearisation commitment”.

On the other hand, Chinese netizens grew more and more impatient with the government’s tolerance of their “insane” neighbor. It wasn’t only polarizing US Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump who said China is the one who should deal with North Korea. On Chinese Twitter-like Weibo, many voiced their criticism of the government’s diplomatic policy in a news thread discussing North Korea’s H-bomb test.

Below are a selection of popular comments that have received more than 1,000 likes:  [Global Voices]

You can read the various reactions at the link.

Also of interest is that One Free Korea in a great opinion piece that I highly recommend everyone read included a link to a Yonhap article that shows that even the Chinese state controlled media is confirming increasing public frustration with North Korea:

In China’s strict-controlled online media, public resentment against North Korea’s fourth nuclear test is growing with some social media users criticizing their government for not taking a tougher response to the North’s test.

Since North Korea announced that it had successfully carried out a hydrogen bomb test last Wednesday, a newspaper published by the Chinese Communist Party has conducted five rounds of online opinion polls about the North’s test.

In one opinion poll of some 42,500 people by the state-run Global Times, 81 percent say the North’s nuclear test poses a threat to China’s security.

In another poll of 4,900 people by the same paper, 82 percent responded that they support new sanctions by the U.N. Security Council against North Korea.  [Yonhap]

You can read more at the link.

It is important to remember that just because the test failed doesn’t mean the North Koreans did not learn something from it to improve the bomb for a second test:

The yield, or the total energy produced by the bomb, also contradicts Pyongyang’s claim.

It is estimated that the Wednesday test generated 6 kilotons of yield, which is less than the 8-kiloton yield of the third nuclear test in 2013.

The North’s second nuclear test in 2009 had 2-kiloton yield, and the first in 2006 yielded less than 1 kiloton of total energy. A yield of 1 kiloton can be approximately compared to 1,000 tons of TNT exploding.

In an H-bomb test by the Soviet Union in 1961, the yield produced by the destructive bomb known as “Czar Bomb” was estimated at 50,000 kilotons.

One government official involved in the assessment of the test last week told the JoongAng Ilbo that the government thinks Pyongyang carried out a failed hydrogen test after reviewing various scientific data and evidence. “We have reviewed a wide range of scientific data such as the strength of the seismic event and sound wave and the detonation location before coming up with the assessment [that it was a failed H-bomb test],” said the official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity.  [Joong Ang Ilbo]

You can read more at the link.

Over at One Free Korea, there is a great update on the current actions going on in Washington, DC in response to the latest North Korean nuclear test.  It appears the one thing Democrats and Republicans can agree on is that the “strategic patience” strategy with North Korea has not worked.  So Congress is moving forward with their own sanctions package which is forcing the executive branch to preempt this by trying to implement their own new sanctions on North Korea.  Whatever the sanctions are it seems to me if it does not include threatening to cut off banks’ access to the US financial system for conducting business with North Korea it will not work to curb their nuclear program:

So far, so good, but then, Nakamura’s sources criticize the President for not trying hard enough to get a deal, which isn’t quite fair. As The Wall Street Journal told us yesterday, “U.S. officials say they have repeatedly tried to engage North Korea in dialogue about its nuclear program in recent months, but Pyongyang hasn’t responded to their advances.” It sounds self-serving, but the record supports that contention. Besides which, the harder American presidents try to “engage” North Korea, the worse their results tend to be.

In this climate, all the administration can really do is shift the focus to its push for tougher sanctions at the U.N. It needs a win in New York to make up for what looks like a general rout of its North Korea (non-) policy in Washington. The administration will probably announce new bilateral sanctions under existing executive orders to preempt some of the momentum in Congress, but I doubt that will appease Congress now. The administration can forget about any new diplomatic initiatives. Its goal now is to avoid a greater crisis, and to keep North Korea from sapping its credibility on other foreign policy issues.  [One Free Korea]

I highly recommend reading the rest at the link.

I would think the Kim regime would have expected this to happen, so it will be interesting to see what their response will be.  Would they try and shoot at one of the loudspeakers again in response to further heighten tensions?:

In response to North Korea’s latest nuclear test, South Korea on Thursday announced it would resume cross-border propaganda broadcasts that Pyongyang considers an act of war. Seoul also began talks with Washington that could see the arrival of nuclear-powered U.S. submarines and warplanes to the Korean Peninsula.

From Seoul to Washington, Beijing to the United Nations, world powers are looking at ways to punish Pyongyang for the test of what it called a new and powerful hydrogen bomb.

The loudspeaker broadcasts, which will start Friday, believed to be the birthday of young North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, are certain to infuriate authoritarian Pyongyang because they are meant to raise questions in North Korean minds about the infallibility of the ruling Kim family. South Korea stopped earlier broadcasts after it agreed with Pyongyang in late August on a package of measures aimed at easing animosities that had the rivals threatening war.

Experts, meanwhile, are trying to uncover more details about the detonation that drew worldwide skepticism and condemnation.  [Associated Press]

You can read the rest at the link.

The Korea Herald explains why a hydrogen bomb is such an important advancement by North Korea if they did in fact test one.  It all comes down to the explosive power of an H-bomb compared to a nuclear fission bomb.  Could you imagine what one of these things would do if used against Seoul or Beijing?:

Nuclear weapons are classified into atomic, neutron and hydrogen bombs. Among them, hydrogen bombs, also known as thermonuclear bombs, are known to be the most powerful due to their unique structure that expresses explosive power.

Unlike atomic bombs that derive their energy from nuclear fission — the splitting of atoms — hydrogen bombs obtain their explosive power from both nuclear fission and fusion, the process of forming a heavier nucleus from two lighter ones, such as the nuclei of the hydrogen isotopes tritium or deuterium.

While fission bombs can have as small as 1 kiloton of explosive power — North Korea’s 2013 nuclear test was known to have 6 to 7 kilotons — hydrogen bombs’ explosive power ranges into the hundreds of kilotons.  [The Korea Herald]

You can read the rest at the link.

It will be interesting to see if this was in fact a hydrogen bomb or just more bluster from North Korea.  North Korea claims the nuclear test is directed towards being a deterrent towards the United States, but I think  it is becoming more of a deterrent against the Chinese government which the Kim regime has an increasingly rocky relationship with:

North Korea has carried out its fourth nuclear test, claiming that it succeeded in developing a hydrogen bomb.

Hours after a massive tremor was detected from the northeastern part of North Korea where its nuclear facility is located, the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) on Wednesday officially announced the test.

The state-run media carried the North Korean government’s statement, which said that North Korean leader Kim Jong-un ordered a hydrogen bomb test.

While calling the test “completely successful,” the KCNA claimed that its weapons program is a nuclear deterrent against the threats from the United States.  [KBS World Radio]

You can read more at the link.

It seems like every few months we hear a report of the North Koreans getting ready for a nuclear test so no one really knows for sure:

North Korea is believed to be excavating a new tunnel at its nuclear test site located in Punggye-ri, according to a U.S. research center that specializes in North Korea affairs, Wednesday.

The conclusions reached by the center’s analysis have prompted speculation that Pyongyang is preparing for a forth nuclear test.

Citing satellite imagery taken from October to November, 38 North have said that Pyongyang is excavating a new tunnel in a new area of the site in addition to the three others where the repressive state has either conducted nuclear tests or excavated tunnels in the past.

“While there are no indications that a nuclear test is imminent, the new tunnel adds to North Korea’s ability to conduct additional detonations at Punggye-ri in the coming years if it chooses to do so,” said the institute. [Korea Times]

You can read more at the link.