N. Korea says nuclear weapons can reach US
SOUTH KOREA: North Korea warned Wednesday that the US mainland was
"well within" the range of its nuclear weapons, as Pyongyang continued
to ramp up the bellicose rhetoric after its recent nuclear test.
In an article posted on the official Uriminzokkiri website, a member
of the Korean National Peace Committee -- a propaganda body -- said the
North was now a "fully-independent rocket and nuclear weapons state".
"The United States should be acutely aware that the US mainland is
now well within the range of our strategic rockets and nuclear weapons,"
the signed commentary said.
North Korea made a similar claim in October last year, saying it
possessed rockets capable of striking the continental United States.
That was largely dismissed as bluster, but that was before Pyongyang
conducted a successful long-range rocket launch in December, followed by
its third nuclear test on February 12.
Although most experts believe the North has a long way to go to
developing a dependable inter-continental ballistic missile, the
December launch was a strong step in the right direction.
AFP |