Chinese state tabloid warns North Korea against nuclear test

WVU82_rivals

Senior
May 29, 2001
199,095
686
0
http://www.reuters.com/article/us-n...7296&utm_medium=trueAnthem&utm_source=twitter


North Korea should halt any plans for nuclear and missile activities "for its own security", a Chinese newspaper said on Wednesday, warning that the United States is making clear it doesn't plan to "co-exist" with a nuclear-armed Pyongyang.

North Korean state media cautioned on Tuesday of a nuclear attack on the United States at any sign of American aggression, as a U.S. Navy strike group steamed toward the western Pacific - a force U.S. President Donald Trump described as an "armada".

Trump, who has urged China to do more to rein in its impoverished ally and neighbor, said in a tweet that North Korea was "looking for trouble" and the United States would "solve the problem" with or without Beijing's help.

The Korean Peninsula has not been so close to a "military clash" since North Korea conducted its first nuclear test in 2006, China's influential state-run tabloid the Global Times said in an editorial.

"Not only [is] Washington brimming with confidence and arrogance following the missile attacks on Syria, but Trump is also willing to be regarded as a man who honors his promises," the paper, run by the ruling Communist Party's official People's Daily, said.

"The U.S. is making up its mind to stop the North from conducting further nuclear tests. It doesn't plan to co-exist with a nuclear-armed Pyongyang," it said.

"Pyongyang should avoid making mistakes at this time."

The Global Times, whose stance does not equate with Chinese government policy, said that Beijing would likely react strongly to any North Korean test.

"If the North makes another provocative move this month, the Chinese society will be willing to see the (U.N. Security Council) adopt severe restrictive measures that have never been seen before, such as restricting oil imports to the North," the paper said.

Beijing has signed on to U.N. sanctions against North Korea, but it has repeatedly called for a return to dialogue to resolve the tensions.

A military parade is expected in Pyongyang to mark Saturday's 105th anniversary of the birth of Kim Il-sung, North Korea's founding father and grandfather of the current ruler. North Korea often marks important anniversaries with tests of its nuclear or missile capabilities.

U.S. officials have previously stressed that stronger sanctions are the most likely U.S. course to press North Korea to abandon its nuclear program, though Washington has said all options - including military ones - are on the table.
 

WVU82_rivals

Senior
May 29, 2001
199,095
686
0

Japanese, U.S. navies plan joint show of force toward North Korea

Japan's navy plans a joint show of force with the U.S. Navy's USS Carl Vinson aircraft carrier strike group as it steams toward the Korean peninsula aimed at deterring secretive North Korean regime from further missile tests, two sources said.

With tension growing markedly, the Korean peninsula is the closest it has been to a "military clash" since Pyongyang's first nuclear test in 2006, an influential state-run Chinese newspaper said on Wednesday.

(To view a graphic on the Carl Vinson strike group, clicktmsnrt.rs/2pqOMWA)

North Korea should halt any plans for nuclear and missile activities "for its own security", the Global Times said in an editorial.

While widely read in China and run by the ruling Communist Party's official People's Daily, the Global Times does not represent government policy.

Tension has escalated sharply on the Korean peninsula amid concerns that reclusive North Korea could soon conduct a sixth nuclear test or more missile launches and U.S. President Donald Trump's threat of unilateral action to solve the problem.

Trump, who has urged China to do more to rein in its impoverished ally and neighbor, said on Twitter that North Korea was "looking for trouble" and the United States would "solve the problem" with or without Beijing's help.

The Global Times editorial noted Trump's recent decision to launch 59 Tomahawk missiles at a Syrian airfield in response to a deadly gas attack last week.

"Not only [is] Washington brimming with confidence and arrogance following the missile attacks on Syria, but Trump is also willing to be regarded as a man who honors his promises," the Global Times said.

"The U.S. is making up its mind to stop the North from conducting further nuclear tests. It doesn't plan to co-exist with a nuclear-armed Pyongyang," it said. "Pyongyang should avoid making mistakes at this time."

North Korean state media warned on Tuesday of a nuclear attack on the United States at any sign of American aggression.

Officials from the North, including leader Kim Jong Un, have indicated an intercontinental ballistic missile test or something similar could be coming.

North Korea launched a long-range rocket carrying a satellite on April 13, 2012, marking the anniversary of the birth of North Korea's founding president Kim Il Sung.

Saturday will be the 105th birthday of the founding leader.



"GREATER PROVOCATIONS"

Concerned at the rapid pace of North Korea's ballistic missile development, Japan's navy plans to conduct exercises with the Vinson strike carrier group, two sources said on condition of anonymity.

The Japanese Maritime Self Defence Force (MSDF) and the U.S. Navy could conduct helicopter landings on each other's ships, as well as communication drills, as the U.S. ships pass through waters close to Japanese territory, the sources said.

"Japan wants to dispatch several destroyers as the Carl Vinson enters the East China Sea," one of them said.

One the people who spoke to Reuters has direct knowledge of the plan, while the other has been briefed on the exercises. MSDF officials did not respond immediately when asked for comment.

A senior Japanese diplomat said it appeared the U.S. position was to put maximum pressure on North Korea to reach a solution peacefully and diplomatically.

"At least, if you consider overall things such as the fact that the U.S. government has not put out warnings to its citizens in South Korea, I think the risk (of military action) at this point is not high," said the diplomat, who asked not to be identified.

South Korea's acting president, Hwang Kyo-ahn, has warned of "greater provocations" by North Korea and ordered the military to intensify monitoring. Lee Duk-haeng, South Korea's unification ministry spokesman, said South Korea, the United States and "other countries" were coordinating closely.

North Korea fired a liquid-fueled Scud missile this month, the latest in a series of tests in defiance of United Nations resolutions and sanctions that have displayed Pyongyang's ability to launch attacks and use hard-to-detect solid-fuel rockets.

North Korea remains technically at war with the United States and its ally South Korea after the 1950-1953 Korean conflict ended in a truce, not a peace treaty. It regularly threatens to destroy both countries.

The Carl Vinson strike group, which canceled a planned visit to Australia, is sailing from Singapore. The 100,000 ton Nimitz-class vessel is powered by two nuclear reactors and carriers almost 100 aircraft.

Under Third Fleet command, it has been patrolling Asia for several months as the Seventh Fleet's forward-deployed carrier in Yokosuka, Japan, undergoes scheduled maintenance.

Japan's navy, the second largest in Asia after China, is made up mostly of escort destroyers, but includes four large helicopter carriers.
 

WVU82_rivals

Senior
May 29, 2001
199,095
686
0
lol...

wonder how many nuke subs we have in the western Pac right now ?

Saturday could get interesting...