NBC news has reported that a US strike on North Korea may be imminent. According to the report,
"The U.S. is prepared to launch a preemptive strike with conventional weapons against North Korea should officials become convinced that North Korea is about to follow through with a nuclear weapons test, multiple senior U.S. intelligence officials told NBC News".This follows speculation that North Korea may test a nuclear weapon to celebrate the 'Day of The Son', the 105th birthday North Korean founder Kim Il-Sung, who was Supreme Leader between 1948 and his death in 1994. The event will occur on the 15th of April.
The Pentagon refused to confirm nor deny the report saying,
"Commanders are always considering a full range of options to protect against any contingencies".Pentagon Spokeswoman Dana White continued,
"Our commitment to the defence of our allies, including the Republic of Korea and Japan, in the face of potential threats, remains steadfast..."North Korea has responded to possible US threats by saying,
"This goes to prove that the US reckless moves for invading the DPRK (Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea/North Korea) have reached a serious phase. If the US dares opt for a military action, crying out for 'preemptive attack' and 'removal of the headquarters' the DPRK is ready to react to any mode of war desired by the US".The statement further said that,
" (The US would be) wholly accountable for the catastrophic consequences".
Comment: North Korea's statements later went even further:
In an official statement from the Staff of the Korean People's Army, North Korea promised to 'ruthlessly destroy' American targets in the region.
Targets which North Korea promises to strike in the event of a US missile attack include US bases in Japan, South Korea as well as the South Korean Presidential palace.
The statement ominously continued,"Our toughest counteraction against the US and its vassal forces will be taken in such a merciless manner as not to allow the aggressors to survive".The statement also said that Pyongyang understands America's strike against Syria to be a 'warning' to North Korea, a provocation which will elicit a powerful North Korean response.
China has publicly warned the US that the consequences of an attack on North Korea would carry more consequences than an attack on Syria.
North Korea has a large arsenal of weapons of mass destruction which includes nuclear weapons. If the US conducts an unprovoked attack, North Korea may deliver on consistent promises to retaliate, implementing measures up to and including total war.
Comment: North Korean Vice Minister Han Song Ryol went on to condemn Trump:
Han criticized current US administration, noting that Washington's attitude towards Pyongyang is "becoming more vicious and more aggressive."
"Trump is always making provocations with his aggressive words," Han said, stressing "it's not the DPRK but the US and Trump that makes trouble."
"Whatever comes from US politicians, if their words are designed to overthrow the DPRK system and government, we will categorically reject them," he said.
Han also dismissed the comment Trump made just after being elected suggesting that he could patch things up with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un over "a hamburger on a conference table" in the White House.
"I think that was nothing more than lip service during the campaign to make himself more popular," Han said.
The North Korean official also slammed the joint military exercises that the US and South Korea are conducting on the peninsula.
"As long as the nuclear threats and blackmail go on with the military exercises, we will carry forward with our national defense buildup, the core of which is the nuclear arms buildup," Han said, adding "whatever comes from the US, we will cope with it. We are fully prepared to handle it."
In spite of historic tensions between Washington and Pyongyang, no military action has been conducted between the two countries since the ceasefire which indefinitely paused the Korean War in 1953.
With reports of US ships within striking range of North Korean targets, the world is now one step closer to nuclear war.
Donald Trump's militaristic foreign policy is looking less like a chess game than Russian roulette.
Comment: The insanity was precipitated by an aggressive move of US forces around North Korea. Statements from the Pentagon include the usual rhetoric:
"Commanders are always considering a full range of options to protect against any contingencies," Pentagon spokeswoman Dana White told Reuters in a statement.
Our commitment to the defense of our allies, including the Republic of Korea and Japan, in the face of potential threats, remains steadfast," she added, giving no further comment's in line with the Pentagon's policy of not discussing future operations or speculating on possible military scenarios.
Earlier on Thursday, US intelligence officials reportedly told NBC News that the US has positioned two destroyers armed with Tomahawk cruise missiles close enough to the North Korean nuclear test site to act preemptively should the Pentagon become "convinced" that a nuclear detonation is imminent.
Rumors of North Korea allegedly preparing its 6th nuclear test has been fueled recently by Pyongyang officials' announcement to foreign journalists to prepare for a "big and important event."
And while the secretive "big event" on Thursday turned out to be the opening ceremony of a new skyscraper-lined street in Pyongyang, speculation continued that the North has scheduled more "events" for the weekend.
North Korea is currently preparing for its biggest national holiday. Dubbed the 'Day of the Sun,' it marks the 105th anniversary of the birth of state founder Kim Il-sung, the grandfather of the current leader. Last April, North Korea test-fired its Musudan intermediate-range missile on the occasion of Kim Il-sung's 104th birthday.
South Korea has meanwhile cautioned the US against rushing into unilateral action, saying, that while they believe the North constantly maintains a state of readiness to conduct nuclear test at any time, there were no new signs indicating that Pyongyang is preparing such a test.
Japan also asked Washington to consult with them before taking any action against Pyongyang.
China has warned the US that taking military action against North Korea will be "much more risky than launching a missile strike on Syria," according to an editorial in the influential newspaper Global Times, which is published by the Chinese Communist Party People's Daily.
Tensions are mounting in the region as US President Donald Trump said he would solve the "North Korean problem" with or without China's help. The warning came amid the diversion of the aircraft carrier group 'USS Carl Vinson' to the Korean Peninsula and a week after Trump ordered the US Navy to fire a barrage of 59 Tomahawk missiles at a Syrian airbase.
Comment: Question is: Is Trump behaving 'crazy like a fox' in order to get some of the warmongering heat off of him and 'blend in' better politically to give him time to maneuver - or, has he just gone plain bat-shit crazy. In either case however the Pentagon's rhetoric and recent military buildup around North Korea has reached a white hot fever pitch of emotion and potential catastrophe that we never even saw under Bush or Obama. Is the potential price of Trump either seeming tough or being tough - whatever the case may be - worth it?