Korean announcement of hydrogen bomb test

North Korean officials claim to have detonated a hydrogen bomb Wednesday, shocking the world community and triggering action from the United Nations.

September 2015: North Korea threatens nuclear attack against USA and reaffirms its main reactor is operational. The other two tests were conducted in 2006 and 2009.

An natural disaster of around 5.1 on the Richter Scale hit North Korea last night near the Punggye-ri nuclear test site and tremors were felt in several Chinese cities.

There is, however, some doubt about North Korea’s claims.

It is widely believed that North Korea isn’t capable of constructing a nuclear weapon small enough to fit on a missile.

U.S. Air Force aircraft created to detect the evidence of a nuclear test, such as radioactive particulate matter and blast-related noble gases, could be deployed from a U.S. base on the Japanese island of Okinawa.

Traditionally China has supported the expansion of sanctions against its ally and neighbour North Korea over nuclear tests and missile launches, though it has pushed hard to ensure the measures are not what it considers excessively harsh. It ensures that North Korea will be a key topic during the USA presidential campaign.

North Korea’s claim that it carried out a successful hydrogen bomb test Wednesday drew swift condemnation from friends and foes alike. The Security Council was holding an emergency meeting.

It was not immediately clear what action, if any, the 15-nation council was planning to take in response to the North Korean statement that it had conducted a fourth nuclear test.

The nature of the bomb has not yet been confirmed independently, and worldwide experts were skeptical in December when North Korea announced it had created a hydrogen bomb.

“The test is not only a grave provocation to our national security but also a threat to our future… and a strong challenge to worldwide peace and stability”, said South Korean president Park Geun-hye, according to the BBC.

But White House spokesman Josh Earnest said Washington’s evidence “calls into serious question” Pyongyang’s claim. If the H-bomb test is genuine, then the world has awoken to a new reality today.

The latest test by North Korea also raises tensions in the region, especially with the country’s neighbors in South Korea.

“For the immediate term, expect further souring of relations with Seoul and, more importantly, Beijing”, said Sue Mi-Terry, Managing Director at Bower Group Asia and former Central Intelligence Agency analyst.