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January 2016 North Korean nuclear test

Coordinates: 41°18′32″N 129°02′02″E / 41.309°N 129.034°E / 41.309; 129.034
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2016 North Korean nuclear test
Information
CountryNorth Korea
Test site41°18′32″N 129°02′02″E / 41.309°N 129.034°E / 41.309; 129.034,[1] Punggye-ri Nuclear Test Site, Kilju County
Period10:00:01, 6 January 2016 (2016-01-06T10:00:01) UTC+08:30 (01:30:01 UTC)[1]
Number of tests1
Test typeUnderground
Device typeHydrogen according to the DPRK, Fission according to National Intelligence Service (South Korea)
Test chronology
North Korea and weapons
of mass destruction
North Korea and weapons of mass destruction
North Korea and weapons of mass destruction
Events
See also

On 6 January 2016 at 10:00:00 UTC+08:30, North Korea conducted an underground nuclear test at its Punggye-ri Nuclear Test Site, approximately 50 kilometres (30 miles) northwest of Kilju City in Kilju County.

The United States Geological Service reported a 5.1 magnitude earthquake from the location; the China Earthquake Networks Center reported the magnitude as 4.9.[1][2][3]

North Korean media made announcements that the regime had successfully tested a hydrogen bomb, which had been claimed to have existed the month before the test was carried out.[4] However, third-party experts, as well as officials and agencies in South Korea, doubted North Korea's claims, and contend that the device was more likely to have been a fission bomb such as a boosted fission weapon. [5]

Background

Main article: North Korea and weapons of mass destruction

North Korea (officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, or DPRK) had previously conducted three underground nuclear tests in 2006, 2009, and 2013, drawing sanctions from the United Nations Security Council.[2][6][7]

The presidents of the United States and South Korea urged North Korea to rejoin the six-party talks in October 2015. The presidents also warned North Korea against a forth nuclear test.[5]

In December 2015, North Korean supreme leader Kim Jong-un suggested that the country had the capacity to launch a hydrogen bomb, a device of considerably more power than conventional atomic bombs used in previous tests.[8] The remark was met with skepticism from the White House and South Korean officials.[9]

In a New Year's Day speech, Kim Jong-un warned that provocation from "invasive outsiders" would be met with a "holy war of justice".[10]

North Korean claims

North Korea described the test as a "complete success",[6] and characterized it as self-defense against the U.S.[2] Korean Central Television (KCTV), the North Korean state-owned media channel, said that "the U.S. has gathered forces hostile to [the] DPRK and raised a slanderous human rights issue to hinder [the] DPRK’s improvement. It is [therefore] just to have [an] H-bomb as self-defense against the U.S. having numerous and humongous nuclear weapons. The DPRK’s fate must not be protected by any forces but [the] DPRK itself".[11]

Test and skepticism of the technology

The earthquake caused by the 2016 nuclear test was similar to the 5.1 magnitude earthquake that accompanied North Korea's previous 2013 nuclear test (which was estimated by South Korea to have a yield of 6–9 kilotons of TNT).[12][13] The tremors were felt in Changbai, Hunchun and Yanji in Jilin province in China.[14][15] China Central Television released photos of students being evacuated in the area and stated that the ground at a local high school showed cracks.[14] According to China's Foreign Ministry, Beijing had no advance knowledge of the test.[14]

Although North Korea declared that the 2016 test was a "successful" demonstration of a hydrogen bomb, international experts and members of the South Korean government expressed skepticism; rather, the test may have involved only a boosted fission weapon.[16] Evidence against the claim of a hydrogen bomb detonation were that the site was not remote enough to be suitable for such a test, that North Korea was not known to have the infrastructure to produce lithium deuteride fuel, and the National Intelligence Service indicated that the yield was too low (about six kilotons).[5]

Senior Defense Analyst Bruce W. Bennett of research organization RAND is also skeptical, telling the BBC that "the bang they should have gotten would have been 10 times greater ... So Kim Jong-un is either lying, saying they did a hydrogen test when they didn't, they just used a little bit more efficient fission weapon – or the hydrogen part of the test really didn't work very well or the fission part didn't work very well."[17] Several nations sent out “sniffer planes” to collect radioactive fallout; the data should allow for a more thorough evaluation of the weapon that was tested.[18]

International reaction

The announcement led to condemnation internationally. The preparatory commission for the Comprehensive Nuclear Test-Ban Treaty Organization, based in Vienna, called this a wake up call for countries that have not signed the treaty (India and Pakistan) to do so and for other members (United States, Iran, Israel, Egypt and China) to finally agree to ratify it.[19]

  •  South Korea – President Park Geun-hye said the country would take decisive measures against any additional provocations.[19] She called the testing "a threat to our future ... and a strong challenge to international peace and stability".[20]
  •  China – Spokesperson Hua Chunying of the Chinese Foreign Ministry said the nation, an ally of North Korea, opposes this nuclear test.[21] "We strongly urge the DPRK side to remain committed to its denuclearisation commitment, and stop taking any actions that would make the situation worse," she added.[20]
  •  Japan – Japanese Prime Minister Shinzō Abe described the test as a "grave defiance of international efforts toward nuclear nonproliferation" and a threat to Japan's security, and declared that the nation would make a "firm response" to the test.[22][23]
  •  Russia – The Russian Government has condemned the hydrogen bomb test, calling it a "threat to national security" and "a clear violation of international law".[24] President Vladimir Putin has given instructions to thoroughly study data of all monitoring stations, including seismic, and analyze the situation in case the information about the test is confirmed.[25]
  •  United States – The United States stated it would respond to provocations and called on North Korea to abide by its international commitments and obligations.[26] A statement from the White House made a general statement that the country would proceed in an appropriate manner in response to provocations in order to defend its allies.[19]
  •  India – Indian External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Vikas Swarup said it is a matter of deep concern that Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) has again acted in violation of its international commitments. India called upon DPRK to refrain from such actions, which adversely impact peace and stability in the region.[28]
  •  Philippines – The Department of Foreign Affairs (Philippines) stated that the Philippines strongly condemns any violation of UN Security Council Resolutions, which have demanded that the DPRK (Democratic People’s Republic of Korea) should not have conducted further nuclear tests [29]
  •  France – This country called the test an "unacceptable violation" of UN resolutions and called for a strong reaction from the international community.[20]
  •  Italy – Foreign Minister Paolo Gentiloni called his Japanese counterpart to discuss “the necessary reactions of the international community” to what Rome called North Korea’s “provocation”.[30]
  •  United Kingdom – Foreign secretary Phillip Hammond said the country "strongly oppose[s] the acquisition or testing of nuclear weapons by North Korea and ... [we] want to see a resumption of the six-party talks.”[19]
  •  United Nations – The Security Council held an emergency session on 6 January 2016 to discuss the legitimacy and consequences of the nuclear test.[31] Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon considers the test as "profoundly destabilizing for regional security".[32] The possibility of additions to existing sanctions by the UN is "raised," says Security Council diplomats.[33]
  •  NATO – This organization said the test "undermines regional and international security, and is in clear breach of UN Security Council resolutions" and added that the country should not have nuclear weapons.[20]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c "M5.1 – 21km ENE of Sungjibaegam, North Korea". United States Geological Survey. Retrieved 6 January 2016.
  2. ^ a b c "North Korean carries out fourth nuclear test". The Guardian. 6 January 2016. Retrieved 6 January 2016.
  3. ^ Munroe, Tony (6 January 2016). "North Korea says tested hydrogen nuclear device". Reuters. Retrieved 6 January 2016.
  4. ^ "DPRK Proves Successful in H-bomb Test". Pyongyang: Korean Central News Agency. 6 January 2016. {{cite news}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help)
  5. ^ a b c Sang-hung, Choe. "North Korea Claims It Tested Hydrogen Bomb but Is Doubted". The New York Times. Retrieved 6 January 2016.
  6. ^ a b Sanger, David E.; Sang-hun, Choe (5 January 2016). "North Korea Announces That It Has Detonated First Hydrogen Bomb". The New York Times. Retrieved 6 January 2016.
  7. ^ "Chronology of major events leading to N. Korea's H-bomb test". Yonhap. 6 January 2016. Retrieved 6 January 2016.
  8. ^ "North Korea has a hydrogen bomb, says Kim Jong-un". The Guardian. Reuters. 10 December 2015. Retrieved 6 January 2016.
  9. ^ Sang-hun, Choe (10 December 2015). "Kim Jong-Un's Claim of North Korea Hydrogen Bomb Draws Skepticism". The New York Times. Retrieved 6 January 2016.
  10. ^ "North Korea's Kim Says He Is Ready For War". Sky News. 1 January 2016. Retrieved 6 January 2016.
  11. ^ "North Korea says it tested hydrogen bomb" NK News. 6 January 2016. Retrieved 6 January 2016.
  12. ^ Choi He-suk (14 February 2013). "Estimates differ on size of N.K. blast". The Korea Herald. Retrieved 17 February 2013.
  13. ^ "M5.1 – 24km ENE of Sungjibaegam, North Korea". USGS. 12 February 2013. Retrieved 12 February 2013.
  14. ^ a b c "North Korea Tests China With Nuclear Claim". The Wall Street Journal. 6 January 2016. Retrieved 6 January 2016.
  15. ^ "The North Korean bomb test that caused tremors in China". The Daily Mail. 6 January 2016. Retrieved 6 January 2016.
  16. ^ Justin McCurry and Michael Safi (6 January 2016). "North Korea claims successful hydrogen bomb test in 'self-defence against US'". The Guardian.
  17. ^ no by-line.--> (6 January 2016). "North Korea nuclear H-bomb claims met by scepticism". BBC News Asia. BBC. Retrieved 6 January 2016.
  18. ^ Fifield, Anna. "North Korea's claim of hydrogen bomb test draws skepticism, condemnations". Washington Post. Washington, DC. Retrieved 6 January 2016.
  19. ^ a b c d e Borger, Julian; McCurry, Justin (6 January 2016). "North Korea hydrogen bomb test claim met with increasing skepticism". The Guardian. Guardian News and Media Limited. Retrieved 6 January 2016.
  20. ^ a b c d e no by-line.-->. "N Korean nuclear test condemned as intolerable provocation". Channel News Asia. Mediacorp. Retrieved 6 January 2016.
  21. ^ "China firmly opposes DPRK's nuclear test". Xinhua News Agency. Retrieved 6 January 2016.
  22. ^ http://s.news.nifty.com/topics/detail/160106042230_1.htm
  23. ^ Umekawa, Takashi (6 January 2016). "Japan says to make firm response to N. Korea's nuclear test". Reuters. Retrieved 6 January 2016.
  24. ^ Gertcyk, Olga (6 January 2016). "Russia condemns North Korea's 'nuclear bomb test', a 'threat to national security'". The Siberian Times. Siberia, Russian Federation. Retrieved 6 January 2016.
  25. ^ [1]
  26. ^ "North Korea announces hydrogen bomb test". BBC News. 6 January 2016. Retrieved 6 January 2016.
  27. ^ "Aust govt condemns North Korea's actions". Sky News Australia. 6 January 2016. Retrieved 6 January 2016.
  28. ^ http://www.newsonair.com/news.asp?cat=national&id=NN16428
  29. ^ http://www.mb.com.ph/ph-expresses-grave-concern-over-north-koreas-hydrogen-bomb/#Y6qjk0ClSOGEkBmT.99
  30. ^ [2]
  31. ^ "North Korea says it has conducted hydrogen bomb test - CNN.com". CNN. Retrieved 6 January 2016.
  32. ^ no byline (6 January 2016). "North Korea nuclear H-bomb claims met by scepticism". BBC News, Asia. BBC. Retrieved 6 January 2016.
  33. ^ "North Korea nuclear test – BBC News". www.bbc.com. Retrieved 6 January 2016.

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