Pence warns NKorea not to mistake U.S. resolve
- by Kristina Cox
- in World Media
- — Apr 18, 2017
"This morning's provocation from the North is just the latest reminder of the risks each one of you face each and every day in the defense of the freedom of the people of South Korea and the defense of America in this part of the world", Pence told USA military families at an Easter dinner.
South Korea's foreign ministry said that by conducting the latest test just a day after displaying a series of missiles, "North Korea has threatened the whole world".
Choe Ryong Hae, widely regarded as the secretive state's number two leading official, accused US President Donald Trump of "creating a war situation" on the Korean Peninsula by sending American forces to the region.
McCain, chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, said the past presidential administrations allowed the authoritarian state to become increasingly hostile. The administration's immediate emphasis, the officials said, will be on increasing pressure on Pyongyang with the help of Beijing.
There were no further details, and the office said it was analyzing the launch.
Two Pukguksong SLBM missiles, seen during the April 15 military parade in Pyongyang, North Korea, to mark the 105th anniversary of the birth of founding leader Kim Il-sung, in a Korean Central Television broadcast.
A South Korean defense official said the action took place in Sinpo, a port city in eastern North Korea.
North Korea has a habit of firing off missiles to mark major political anniversaries, or as gestures of defiance to top United States officials visiting the region.
"It's a failed test". He says the Trump administration hopes their clarity will be received in North Korea, adding the US and its allies will achieve its objectives through "peaceable means or ultimately by whatever means are necessary" to protect South Korea and stabilize the region.
David Shuster, a reporter at i24NEWS, also tweeted Sunday that "multiple intelligence sources" tell him that USA federal hackers sabotaged North Korea's missile launch.
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Their rhythm was superb and was able to resist the occasional Cambridge surges in what was an excellent competitive race. Both Cambridge and Oxford left the Boat Race victors yesterday winning the women's and men's races respectively.
The status of the North Korean underground nuclear test program is unchanged, a senior USA defense official told CNN, and a test could come at any time.
The launch, off the North's east coast, failed, South Korea also said.
Bruce Bennett, a senior defense analyst at the think tank RAND Corporation, said he thinks the missiles were not the kind that could reach the United States' mainland.
The U.S., which last week acted unilaterally in ordering a cruise missile strike on Syria, has recently dispatched what Trump called an "armada", including an aircraft carrier, into waters off the Korean Peninsula.
In return, North Korea would get badly needed food aid.
The North regularly launches short-range missiles, but is also developing mid-range and long-range missiles meant to target US troops in Asia and, eventually, the USA mainland.
"Let me assure you that under President Trump's leadership our resolve has never been stronger, our commitment to this historic alliance with the courageous people of South Korea has never been stronger and with your help and God's help freedom will ever prevail on this peninsula", he said. China's customs department issued an order on April 7 telling traders to return North Korean coal cargoes, said trading sources with knowledge of the order.
North Korea launched a long-range rocket and conducted two nuclear tests a year ago, including its most powerful to date.
A missile that could be a new ICBM, seen at the Apr. 15 military parade in Pyongyang, North Korea, to mark the 105th anniversary of the birth of founding leader Kim Il-sung, in this photo from the Apr. 15 edition of the Rodong Sinmun newspaper.
