Defiant North Korea refuses to stop nuclear weapons program
August 7, 2017
North Korea has vowed that "under no circumstances" will it put its nuclear weapons on the negotiating table. Earlier, Pyongyang threatened to make the US pay "thousands of times" for drafting the latest sanctions.
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/Wong Maye-E
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North Korean Foreign Minister Ri Yong Ho struck a defiant tone Monday at the ASEAN Regional Forum in Manila, Asia's largest security forum, saying the latest round of UN sanctions would not stop it from developing its nuclear arsenal.
"We will under no circumstances put the nukes and ballistic rockets on [the] negotiating table," Pyongyang's top diplomat told ASEAN delegates, among them US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson. "Neither shall we flinch even an inch from the road to bolstering up the nuclear forces chosen by ourselves unless the hostile policy and nuclear threat of the US against North Korea is fundamentally eliminated."
Despite the strong posturing, North Korea has found itself increasingly isolated since it conducted two intercontinental ballistic missile (ICMB) tests last month. The second test in particular raised fear that Pyongyang could be on the cusp of developing missiles capable of reaching the US mainland.
China, the North's principal ally and economic lifeline, agreed to fully implement the latest round of sanctions, which will slash around $1 billion (850 million euros), or roughly one-third, of the reclusive state's export revenue.
The sanctions also bar countries from employing North Korean laborers commissioned to work abroad.
Furthermore, they ban any new joint business ventures with the regime, as well as fresh investment into such existing ventures.
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi told reporters in the Philippine capital that "China will for sure implement that new resolution 100 percent, fully and strictly."
However, Ri said the latest penalties imposed on the North typified the US pushing Pyongyang into a corner, forcing it to defend itself.
"Because of the arbitrariness of the US, the situation in the Korean Peninsula is heading further into the extreme with the danger of conflict on continuous increase," he said.
Ri also stressed that North Korea was a "responsible nuclear power and ICBM [intercontinental ballistic missile] state," adding that it has "no intention to use nuclear weapons against or threaten with nuclear weapons any other country except the US, unless it joins military action of the US against North Korea" - possibly referring to China and Russia, who have in the past provided diplomatic cover for Pyongyang.
A similar stance was also emphasized in an earlier statement made via the North Korean regime's official KCNA news agency, in which the North threatened to take "righteous action" and make the US "pay the price for its crime… thousands of times" for drafting the sanctions.
ICBM threat and North Korea's overall military strength
For years, the international community downplayed the threat of North Korea's military power. With the test launch of an intercontinental ballistic missile, it is clear that Pyongyang's military capabilities are growing.
Image: Gettty Images/AFP/E. Jones
Major achievement
In early June 2017, North Korea test-launched an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) for the first time. Testing an ICBM marked a major military achievement for Pyongyang and a serious escalation of tensions with the United States and its allies in the region, particularly South Korea and Japan.
Image: Reuters/KCNA
Trouble with warheads
At the time, defense experts said the ICBM could reach as far as the US states of Alaska and Hawaii. However, it was unclear if North Korea can field an ICBM capable of carrying a nuclear warhead on its cone that could survive reentry into the Earth's atmosphere. North Korean state media claimed the ICBM was capable of carrying a "large, heavy nuclear warhead" to any part of the United States.
Image: Reuters/KCNA
Pyongyang's nuclear tests - six times and counting
The ICBM is believed to be a step forward in the North's nuclear program. Despite pressure from the international community, Pyongyang has made no secret of its nuclear ambitions. Alongside its ritual ballistic missile tests, North Korea has conducted nuclear tests on at least six occasions, including one in September 2017.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/KCNA
US running out of patience?
Responding to the first ICBM test with a show of force, the US and South Korean troops on conducted "deep strike" precision missile drills using Army Tactical Missile System (ATACMS) and the Republic of Korea's Hyunmoo Missile II. In April, the US sent its Carl Vinson aircraft carrier towards the Korean Peninsula, saying it was taking prudent measures against the North.
Image: picture-alliance/Zumapress/M. Brown
Testing the boundaries
Ignoring international condemnation, Pyongyang test-launched another rocket on July 28, 2017, just weeks after its first ICBM test. In both of the tests, North Korea used Hwasong-14 missile, but the second one reached a higher altitude and traveled a larger distance than the first one, according to the state media.
Image: Getty Images/AFP/KCNA
Whole of US within range?
Pyongyang conducted its third test November 29, using a newly developed Hwasong-15 missile. US, Japanese and South Korean officials said it rose to about 4,500 km (2,800 miles) and flew 960 kilometers (600 miles) over about 50 minutes before landing in Japan's exclusive economic zone off the country's coast.
Image: picture-alliance/MAXPPP
One of the world's largest militaries
Apart from a developing missile and nuclear program, North Korea has a powerful army with 700,000 active troops and another 4.5 million in the reserves. It can call upon almost a quarter of its population to serve in the army at any given time. The North's bloated army is believed to outnumber its southern neighbor's by two-to-one.
Image: Getty Images/AFP/E. Jones
Vast capabilities
According to the 2017 Global Firepower Index, the North has, as part of a far-reaching arsenal, 458 fighter aircraft, 5,025 combat tanks, 76 submarines, and 5,200,000 total military personnel. The picture above from 2013 shows leader Kim Jong Un ordering strategic rocket forces to be on standby to strike US and South Korean targets at any time.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa
Enemies all around
Alongside the United States, Pyongyang views its neighbors South Korea and Japan as its two other main enemies. North Korea has used US military exercises in the region as means of galvanizing its people, claiming that the exercises are dress rehearsals for an impending invasion.
Image: Reuters/K. Hong-Ji
Huge, colorful demonstrations of military might
Every year, hundreds of thousands of soldiers and citizens roll through the streets of the capital Pyongyang to take part in the North's military parades. Preparations for the rallies often begin months in advance, and the parades usually mark important anniversaries linked with the Communist Party or Kim Jong Un's family.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/KCNA
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Tillerson sets high bar for talks
US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson laid out a narrow path for North Korea to return to dialogue and ultimately see the latest round of sanctions lifted, stressing that Pyongyang must first stop testing its missile for "extended period" before any future negotiations will be considered.
"The best signal that North Korea could send that they're prepared to talk would be to stop these missile launches," Tillerson said. "This is not a 'give me 30 days and we are ready to talk.' It's not quite that simple. So it is all about how we see their attitude towards approaching a dialogue with us."
"It's quite clear in terms of there being no daylight between the international community as to the expectation that North Korea will take steps to achieve all of my objectives, which is a denuclearized Korean peninsula," he said.
Haley: 'The threat of an outlaw nuclearized North Korean dictatorship remains'
