PressTV...A senior North Korean official says his country will wage nuclear war on the United States if the autonomy of his country is threatened, the Korea Times reported. "If the U.S. ever threatens our autonomy or existence, our military will launch nuclear warheads toward the headquarters of evil: the White House, the Pentagon, military bases in the Pacific Ocean and major U.S. cities," said Hwang Byung-suh, director of the military's General Political Bureau, during an address to a large military rally in Pyongyang on Sunday.
He added that recent joint military drills between the US and South Korea have increased tensions in the Korean peninsula.
Washington and Seoul launched joint five-day war games in South Korean waters on July 16 which involved the USS George Washington carrier strike group. The 88,000-ton nuclear-powered aircraft carrier was loaded with about 70 aircraft.
Also, Lt. Gen. Kim Sang-ryong said, "We are fully prepared to give a taste of real war to South Korea and the imperialist US forces that dream of domination and assimilation. We are just waiting for the orders.”
Meanwhile, Strategic Commander Kim Rak-kyum said, if North Korea is threatened, the army will "fire warheads at not only the stronghold of imperialism itself, but also at US military bases around the world."
South Korea claims that the navy drills are humanitarian in nature, while North Korea dubs them as a prelude to invasion.
The two countries remain technically at war because the 1950-53 Korean War ended in an armistice, not a peace deal.
HRM/AB/SL
N Korea can strike US with nuclear electromagnetic pulse: Report
Sun Apr 13, 2014
A recent US government report says North Korea could deliver on its threats to attack the United States with a nuclear electromagnetic pulse.
The report prepared by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said Pyongyang would use its Unha-3 rocket to attack the US from the south over the South Pole, said Peter Vincent Pry, executive director of the congressional advisory Task Force on security.
Pry, who has reportedly seen a copy of the report, said the Pentagon “has no early warning radars or interceptors” to stop a missile from the south.
The long-suppressed report remains blocked from release to the American public.
“The North Koreans are seeing what they can get away with,” media outlets quoted Pry as saying, adding, “It shows that Pyongyang is planning something big against the US.”
Senior North Korean officials have repeatedly stated that Washington is colluding with regional allies to topple the country's government. Pyongyang has pledged to respond to any attempt of regime change.
Pyongyang has recently launched rockets and ballistic missiles and has also threatened to conduct a new nuclear test.
North Korea says it will take additional measures to demonstrate its might as long as threats from the US persist.
The developments come as South Korea and the US are currently conducting annual joint military drills, which Pyongyang has condemned as a rehearsal for invasion.
Last year’s maneuvers fuelled tensions, with Pyongyang threatening a pre-emptive nuclear strike and US stealth bombers flying over the peninsula.
An electromagnetic pulse attack entails the detonation of a nuclear warhead hundreds of miles above the earth's surface. The resulting burst of energy can disrupt or destroy all electronic devices and defense systems in the affected area.
JR/HMV/SL