Conflict on the Korean peninsula - 05/02/2017

China North Korea China Warns its Citizens in North Korea to Leave as Conflict with US Looms

Fearing a possible US attack on North Korea, Beijing is urging its citizens there to return, as Pyongyang continues its nuclear weapons and ballistic missile tests.

Sputnik,

2 April, 2017

The US-funded Radio Free Asia reported on Tuesday that the Chinese Embassy in North Korea sent out the warning less than a week before the 85th anniversary of the Korean People’s Army on April 25, an occasion some expected the North to use as an opportunity to conduct its sixth nuclear test. 

Pyongyang instead conducted a large live-fire drill. Four days after the anniversary, the North carried out a missile test, but the projectile exploded several minutes after launching, a "failure" South Korean officials later surmised was intentional. 

Amid holiday celebrations, the nuclear-powered USS Michigan submarine, armed with 150 Tomahawk missiles, joined a US Navy carrier strike group led by the USS Carl Vinson near the Korean Peninsula, in a show of force from Washington.

A Korean-Chinese citizen who left Pyongyang after receiving the warning in late April told Radio Free Asia, "The embassy has never given such a warning. I was worried and left the country in a hurry," according to the Korea Times. 

He added that, despite mounting tensions with South Korea and the US, Pyongyang’s “peaceful” environment prevented a sense of urgency or panic amongst the Korean-Chinese population.

With the recent deployment in South Korea of the controversial Terminal High Altitude Area Defense system (THAAD), Washington’s threats of military action against the North and the US’s ongoing joint military exercises with South Korea, Pyongyang has accused the US of pushing the peninsula "to the brink of nuclear war" with its "aggression and hysteria."

Through the state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), the North has stated that it will "continue to bolster its military capabilities for self-defense and pre-emptive nuclear attack," with a spokesman saying in a statement Tuesday, "Now that the US is kicking up the overall racket for sanctions and pressure against DPRK, pursuant to its new DPRK policy called 'maximum pressure and engagement,' the DPRK will speed up at the maximum pace the measure for bolstering its nuclear deterrence," the Guardian reported. 

On Monday, KCNA also noted that the North was prepared to conduct its next nuclear test whenever leadership deemed it appropriate.

China Tells its Citizens to Evacuate North Korea

China has told its citizens living in North Korea to evacuate, amidst rising tensions between North Korea and the US. At the same time China and Russia are demanding the THAAD system be removed from Soul and Russian General warns that US may be planning preemptive Nuclear strike on Russia
links:

https://www.gazeta.ru/army/2017/04/26...
http://www.newsweek.com/russia-us-glo...
https://www.rt.com/news/386828-china-...
https://already-happened.com/2017/05/...
https://sputniknews.com/asia/20170502...
https://sputniknews.com/asia/20170502...
https://sputniknews.com/middleeast/20...
https://www.google.cz/search?biw=1280...

China demands ‘immediate’ halt to THAAD deployment in South Korea

Beijing has called for an immediate stop to the deployment of the US Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) anti-missile system to South Korea and is ready to protect its interests, according to the Chinese Foreign Ministry.

Foreign Ministry spokesperson Geng Shuang voiced the government’s position against the move during a briefing on Tuesday.

"We oppose the deployment of the US missile system to South Korea and call on all parties to immediately stop this process. We are ready to take necessary measures to protect our interests," he said, adding that “China’s position on the THAAD issue has not changed.”

The spokesperson didn’t specify what protective measures China had in mind. However, responding to the THAAD installation, China announced on Thursday that it will stage live-fire exercises and test new weapons to protect its security.

Beijing has previously voiced concerns over the THAAD system and joint US-South Korean drills near the Korean Peninsula, consistently urging all the parties involved to find a peaceful solution to the volatile situation in the region.

Backed by Russia, it also proposed a halt to military drills in exchange for an end to Pyongyang’s missile and nuclear tests during a United Nations Security Council (UNSC) session held in New York on Friday.

Moscow considers the stationing of the THAAD system to be an “additional destabilizing factor for the region” amid alarmingly increasing tensions. It has called on Washington and Seoul to reconsider the decision.

READ MORE: ‘Ready to intercept North’s missiles’: US THAAD missiledefense system goes operational in S. Korea

Recently installed in South Korea, the THAAD system is aimed at detecting and shooting down missiles. It became operational on Monday and is able “to intercept North Korean missiles and defend the Republic of Korea [South Korea]," according to US Forces Korea spokesman Col. Rob Manning.

The deployment of the US defense system triggered protests in South Korea, with citizens saying that it would only provoke an attack from their northern neighbor.

Seoul was also reportedly asked to pay for the US missile shield, as President Donald Trump called on South Korea to cough up for the “phenomenal billion-dollar system.” He received a firm rebuke in response, however.

READMORE: Trump wants S. Korea to foot $1bn THAAD bill, Seoul says no

The THAAD deployment comes as a part of other US steps to deter North Korea from testing nuclear and non-nuclear missiles. Pyongyang held two failed missiles tests in April, also threating to sink US warships and submarines in South Korean waters in the event of any provocation.

China,Russia to counter Donald Trump's controversial THAAD missile shield

Beijing: China and Russia have vowed "to take further action" against the United States' ambition to build a global anti-missile shield that they argue will give US forces a unilateral military advantage.

Chinese and Russian officials met in Moscow on Wednesday within hours of the installation by the US of large parts of the controversial THAAD anti-missile radar at Seonju, 300 kilometres from Seoul.

Pyongyang Says US B-1 Drills Push Peninsula Closer to Nuclear War

Pyongyang is accusing the US of edging the Korean Peninsula closer to war, after US B-1B strategic bombers flew over the Koreas as part of a drill with regional air defense forces.

North Korea: US bombers pushing crisis close to nuclear war

Failed North Korean missile was headed for Russia, Seoul Economy Daily reports, but was detonated

NORTH Korea’s failed missile was reportedly headed towards Russia, but was detonated, prompting Vladimir Putin to put his country on high alert.

Pyongyang test-fired the ballistic weapon on Saturday despite calls from the US and others to curb its nuclear trials.

Seoul Economy Daily reports that the KN-17 weapon travelled 48 kilometres before officials exploded it after fears it was fired at Russia by accident.