N. Korea threatens to attack US, S. Korea warships

N. Korea threatens to attack US, S. Korea warships


By HYUNG-JIN KIM, Associated Press Writer – 30 mins ago

SEOUL, South Korea – North Korea threatened military action Wednesday against U.S. and South Korean warships plying the waters near the Koreas' disputed maritime border, raising the specter of a naval clash just days after the regime's underground nuclear test.
Pyongyang, reacting angrily to Seoul's decision to join an international program to intercept ships suspected of aiding nuclear proliferation, called the move tantamount to a declaration of war.
"Now that the South Korean puppets were so ridiculous as to join in the said racket and dare declare a war against compatriots," North Korea is "compelled to take a decisive measure," the Committee for the Peaceful Reunification of Korea said in a statement carried by state media.
The North Korean army called it a violation of the armistice the two Koreas signed in 1953 to end their three-year war, and said it would no longer honor the treaty.
South Korea's military said Wednesday it was prepared to "respond sternly" to any North Korean provocation.
North Korea's latest belligerence comes as the U.N. Security Council debates how to punish the regime for testing a nuclear bomb Monday in what President Barack Obama called a "blatant violation" of international law.
Ambassadors from the five permanent veto-wielding council members — the United States, Russia, China, Britain and France — as well as Japan and South Korea were working out the details of a new resolution.
The success of any new sanctions would depend on how aggressively China, one of North Korea's only allies, implements them.
"It's not going too far to say that China holds the keys on sanctions," said Kim Sung-han, an international relations professor at Seoul's Korea University.
South Korea, divided from the North by a heavily fortified border, had responded to the nuclear test by joining the Proliferation Security Initiative, a U.S.-led network of nations seeking to stop ships from transporting the materials used in nuclear bombs.
Seoul previously resisted joining the PSI in favor of seeking reconciliation with Pyongyang, but pushed those efforts aside Monday after the nuclear test in the northeast.
North Korea warned Wednesday that any attempt to stop, board or inspect its ships would constitute a "grave violation."
The regime also said it could no longer promise the safety of U.S. and South Korean warships and civilian vessels in the waters near the Korea's western maritime border.
"They should bear in mind that the (North) has tremendous military muscle and its own method of strike able to conquer any targets in its vicinity at one stroke or hit the U.S. on the raw, if necessary," the army said in a statement carried by state media.
The maritime border has long been a flashpoint between the two Koreas. North Korea disputes the line unilaterally drawn by the United Nations at the end of the Koreas' three-year war in 1953, and has demanded it be redrawn further south.
The truce signed in 1953 and subsequent military agreements call for both sides to refrain from warfare, but doesn't cover the waters off the west coast.
North Korea has used the maritime border dispute to provoke two deadly naval skirmishes — in 1999 and 2002.
On Wednesday, the regime promised "unimaginable and merciless punishment" for anyone daring to challenge its ships.
Pyongyang also reportedly restarted its weapons-grade nuclear plant, South Korean media said.
The Chosun Ilbo newspaper said U.S. spy satellites detected signs of steam at the North's Yongbyon nuclear complex, an indication it may have started reprocessing nuclear fuel. The report, which could not be confirmed, quoted an unidentified government official. South Korea's Yonhap news agency also carried a similar report.
The move would be a major setback for efforts aimed at getting North Korea to disarm.
North Korea had stopped reprocessing fuel rods as part of an international deal. In 2007, it agreed to disable the Yongbyon reactor in exchange for aid and demolished a cooling tower at the complex.
The North has about 8,000 spent fuel rods which, if reprocessed, could allow it to harvest 13 to 18 pounds (six to eight kilograms) of plutonium — enough to make at least one nuclear bomb, experts said. North Korea is believed to have enough plutonium for at least a half dozen atomic bombs.
Further ratcheting up tensions, North Korea test-fired five short-range missiles over the past two days, South Korean officials confirmed.
Russia's foreign minister said world powers must be firm with North Korea but take care to avoid inflaming tensions further.
The world "must not rush to punish North Korea just for punishment's sake," Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said, adding that Russia wants a Security Council resolution that will help restart stalled six-nation talks over North Korea's nuclear programs and will not provoke Pyongyang into even more aggressive activity.
South Korean President Lee Myung-bak urged officials to "remain calm" in the face of North Korean threats, said Lee Dong-kwan, his spokesman.
Pyongyang isn't afraid of any repercussions for its actions, a North Korean newspaper, the Minju Joson, said Wednesday.
"It is a laughable delusion for the United States to think that it can get us to kneel with sanctions," it said in an editorial. "We've been living under U.S. sanctions for decades, but have firmly safeguarded our ideology and system while moving our achievements forward. The U.S. sanctions policy toward North Korea is like striking a rock with a rotten egg."
___
Associated Press writer Steve Gutterman in Moscow and Edith M. Lederer at the United Nations contributed to this report.

Views: 30

Comment

You need to be a member of 12160 Social Network to add comments!

Join 12160 Social Network

"Destroying the New World Order"

TOP CONTENT THIS WEEK

THANK YOU FOR SUPPORTING THE SITE!

mobile page

12160.info/m

12160 Administrators

 

Latest Activity

cheeki kea commented on tjdavis's video
Thumbnail

Route 91: Uncovering the Cover Up

"Video not always showing on you tube according to comment section. I can't see it anyways but…"
19 minutes ago
Doc Vega posted a blog post
1 hour ago
tjdavis posted a blog post
15 hours ago
Doc Vega favorited Burbia's video
16 hours ago
Doc Vega commented on Burbia's video
Thumbnail

InfoWars reporter Jamie White ‘brutally murdered’ near Austin residential area, outlet says

"Gosh do you think the Deep State was sending Alex a message? These bastards!"
16 hours ago
Doc Vega commented on tjdavis's video
Thumbnail

Route 91: Uncovering the Cover Up

"The lying bastards never covered one aspect of the shooter who was in bad health and couldn't…"
16 hours ago
Doc Vega favorited tjdavis's video
16 hours ago
cheeki kea commented on cheeki kea's photo
Thumbnail

furniture fail.

"Yip most folks here believe Trudeau the clown attempted to undertake a Whakapohane and failed…"
22 hours ago
Doc Vega posted blog posts
yesterday
tjdavis posted a video

Route 91: Uncovering the Cover Up

On October 1, 2017 58 people were killed at the Route 91 country music concert in Las Vegas....and by 2 weeks the media dropped the entire story due to all t...
yesterday
Doc Vega posted a blog post

Do Not Sleep in a Wilderness Cabin Alone There’s something out there!

It’s been well described by a number of encounters, and in some of those encounters the subject…See More
Friday
rlionhearted_3 posted photos
Friday
cheeki kea commented on Doc Vega's blog post Why Do They Want to Kill Elon Musk?
"Musk is the face of the intelligent geek nerd army who is exposing almost everything that concerns…"
Friday
cheeki kea posted a photo
Friday
Doc Vega posted blog posts
Thursday
Sandy posted a video

DARK WATERS | Official Trailer | In Theaters November 22

Mark Ruffalo stars in #Darkwaters.Get tickets: https://www.darkwaterstickets.com/From Participant (Spotlight), DARK WATERS tells the shocking and heroic stor...
Thursday
tjdavis favorited Doc Vega's blog post Why Has it taken so Long for Alejandro Mayorkas to be Impeached? Well that's Finally Happening
Thursday
tjdavis posted a video

Deception Has Evolved Into MASS BRAINWASHING

Deception has taken a dark turn, and it's no longer just about manipulating individuals. Today, mass brainwashing has become a powerful tool used to control ...
Thursday
cheeki kea commented on tjdavis's photo
Thumbnail

Rainbow Rousing

"I wonder how much longer the USA and Russia is going to put up with UK/NATO/& the West war…"
Wednesday
Doc Vega posted a blog post

A Promise I Cannot Keep

A mystical passage in a dream far away Perhaps deeply embedded in the Milky Way Rather than leave…See More
Tuesday

© 2025   Created by truth.   Powered by

Badges  |  Report an Issue  |  Terms of Service

content and site copyright 12160.info 2007-2019 - all rights reserved. unless otherwise noted