South Korea Defense Ministry says North fired ‘unidentified projectile’

Admiral Harry Harris Jr, who is in charge of the United States Pacific Command based in Hawaii, said on Wednesday (17 May) that North Korean leader Kim Jong-un was inching closer to developing a nuclear warhead capable of striking any country.

North Korea claims the missile is a new medium-long range ballistic rocket capable of carrying a heavy nuclear warhead.

A unification ministry spokesman in Seoul said Wednesday that the lines haven’t technically been cut, but North Korean officials have not responded to near daily calls from their counterparts in the South.

North Korea tested a longer-range missile last weekend, which experts say was a significant advance for a weapons program that aims at having a nuclear-tipped missile that can strike America.

Tillerson also said that the USA sends its messages only through public channels and the North shouldn’t inquire about US intentions “through back channels”, according to the official.

People cheer as missile developers arrive in Pyongyang, North Korea.

South Korea has complained that some of is companies doing business in China have faced discrimination in retaliation for the system’s deployment.

During the meeting, Trump expressed hope for working closely together with Moon to strengthen the alliance and resolve the North Korean nuclear issue, Hong said.

Unidentified U.S. intelligence officials told the Washington Free Beacon Pompeo met with Thae Yong-ho, the former North Korean diplomat who fled Pyongyang’s Embassy in London in 2016.

He said Trump was also interested in achieving peace through dialogue with the North, although calling on sanctions for now to pressure Pyongyang.

U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley raised concern on Friday about an application by North Korea to patent a process to produce sodium cyanide, which can be used to make the nerve agent Tabun and is also used in the extraction of gold.

“We want to look at the current sanctions in place, and we want to look at strengthening the sanctions”.

Mattis took a cautious stance on military action, and put value on diplomatic efforts, including strengthening sanctions against North Korea for the time being. But he has said that North Korea must change its attitude of insisting on pressing ahead with its arms development before dialogue is possible.

Haley also criticised Moscow, after Russian President Vladimir Putin responded to North Korea’s latest missile launch by saying that while his country opposed Pyongyang’s nuclear programme, it was unacceptable for countries to intimidate North Korea.

Pyongyang has carried out two atomic tests and dozens of missile launches since the beginning of a year ago in its quest to develop a missile capable of delivering a nuclear warhead to the continental United States.