North Korea's main nuclear testing site poses a serious risk of radiation leakage after five successive bomb tests caused a mountain to collapse, Chinese geologists say.

The notorious facility has been ruled unsafe for future testing and authorities have been urged to monitor "leakage of radioactive materials", a study found.

Issuing their warning, the authors of the paper - Tian Dongdong, Yao Jiawen and Wen Lianxing - said careful attention should be paid to any radioactive leaks following "research finding that the North Korea nuclear test site at Mantapsan has collapsed".

The study was by China's university of science and technology, which collected data following North Korea's most powerful bomb test on September 3.

Experts believe the estimated 100 kilotons of TNT explosion triggered an initial collapse of the site, followed by an "earthquake swarm" over several weeks, reports Sky News.

It's not the first time nuclear tests have concerned Chinese geologists - the site is a mere 100km from the border.

And there are fears further testing could threaten volcanic eruption at Mount Paektu, on the North Korea-China border.

Just days ago, North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un promised the country would stop conducting nuclear and intercontinental ballistic missile tests.

It is believed he made the vow ahead of his meeting with Donald Trump.

Kim said his country no longer needed to conduct tests because it has completed its goal of developing nuclear weapons.

“To guarantee suspension of nuclear tests in a transparent manner, the republic’s northern nuclear test site will be abolished," state media Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said.

“The overall projects of the party and the country will be geared towards building of a socialist economy, and all our efforts will be made towards it."

The North's state media, on Saturday, said the nuclear test site would be abolished in order to pursue economic growth and peace on the Korean peninsula.

North Korea also said it would engage in talks with the international community, paving the way for the summit with South Korean President Moon Jae-in planned for tomorrow and a meeting with Donald Trump in late May or early June.

Trump welcomed the news and said he is looking forward to the summit with Kim.

"North Korea has agreed to suspend all Nuclear Tests and close up a major test site. This is very good news for North Korea and the World - big progress! Look forward to our Summit," Trump said on Twitter.

The President has said the US respects North Korea, and this was recipricated.

His comment came after "direct talks at very high levels, extremely high levels" with North Korean leader Kim, he said..

Trump had sent the US Secretary of State to the country for a top-secret meeting over Easter.

The UK Government said in a ­statement: “We hope this indicates an effort to negotiate in good faith.

"A long-term commitment to halt all nuclear tests and ICBM launches would be a positive step.

“We remain committed to working with our international partners to bring about our goal of a complete, verifiable and irreversible denuclearisation of the Korean peninsula, and to do so through peaceful means.”

Tomorrow's historic summit between North and South Korea will discuss nuclear ambitions of the North.

It'll be the first time summit between the two countries in a decade.</s>North Korea agreed on Friday to suspend all nuclear tests in anticipation of a meeting with President Trump, according to reports.

The Yonhap News Agency reports North Korean leader Kim Jong Un announced the suspension of missile tests, in addition to the shut down of a nuclear site in the country’s northern region.

“From April 21, North Korea will stop nuclear tests and launches of intercontinental ballistic missiles,” an announcement from the Korean Central News Agency stated.

“The North will shut down a nuclear test site in the country’s northern side to guarantee transparency in suspending nuclear tests.”

The announcement comes as leaders from North and South Korea plan a summit with President Trump in upcoming weeks to discuss the possibility of denuclearizing the Korean Peninsula.

President Trump lauded the move on Twitter saying it is “big progress” and “very good news” for the world.

“North Korea has agreed to suspend all Nuclear Tests and close up a major test site. This is very good news for North Korea and the World – big progress! Look forward to our Summit.”

Watch Alex’s report from last month when N. Korea first asked for a meeting with Trump:</s>
• North Korea's primary nuclear test site remains "fully operational" and could be used for further testing in the future, according to a report released Monday.
• Monday's report comes after North Korean leader Kim Jong Un made the announcement on April 20 that his regime would cease its nuclear and long-range missile tests and close the mountainous Punggye-ri nuclear test site, where the regime has conducted all six of its nuclear tests.
• Some experts have suggested that another test at the Punggye-ri nuclear test site could totally destroy it and potentially even cause a mountain to collapse.

North Korea's primary nuclear test site remains "fully operational" and could be used for further testing in the future, 38 North, a watchdog dedicated to analyzing the rogue state, warned Monday.

"North Korea’s Punggye-ri nuclear test site, where North Korea has conducted six acknowledged underground detonations is still, as far as we can tell, fully operational," 38 North reported.

Following North Korea's sixth nuclear test in September, commercial satellite imagery reportedly revealed significant tunneling in one area of the site up until early March. This activity appeared to slow down toward the end of March, but did not stop entirely into early April. According to 38 North, this suggests "that either the tunnel was complete and ready for future renewed testing or that the slowdown simply mirrored the ongoing political changes underway."

With that said, some experts have suggested another test at the Punggye-ri nuclear test site could totally destroy it and potentially even cause a mountain to collapse.

Monday's report comes after North Korean leader Kim Jong Un made the announcement on April 20 that his regime would cease its nuclear and long-range missile tests and close the mountainous Punggye-ri nuclear test site, where it has conducted all six of its nuclear tests.

"From April 21, North Korea will stop nuclear tests and launches of intercontinental ballistic missiles," the Korean Central News Agency said, according to the Seoul-based Yonhap News Agency. "The North will shut down a nuclear test site in the country's northern side to prove the vow to suspend nuclear test."

Kim's announcement was met with applause by President Donald Trump, who took to Twitter on Friday and described the move as "Progress being made for all!"

Trump is set to meet with Kim to discuss the rogue state's nuclear program in the near future, though on Sunday he tweeted, "We are a long way from conclusion on North Korea, maybe things will work out, and maybe they won't - only time will tell....But the work I am doing now should have been done a long time ago!" In a separate tweet on Sunday, Trump incorrectly claimed Kim's regime had "agreed to denuclearization" — North Korea has not indicated it will give up its existing nuclear weapons.

North Korea conducted a slew of long-range missile tests last year as part of its larger ambitions to develop a nuclear weapon capable of reaching the mainland US. This generated outrage across the international community and resulted in harsh economic sanctions being leveled against Pyongyang. But the tide began to shift in early 2018 as North and South Korea, historic enemies, renewed dialogue for the first time in roughly two years. This has also led to a cautious warming of relations between Pyongyang and Washington.</s>BEIJING -- Research by Chinese geologists suggests that the mountain above North Korea's main nuclear test site has likely collapsed. That collapse has likely rendered the site unsafe for further testing and will require that it be monitored for any leaking radiation.

The findings by the scientists at the University of Science and Technology of China may shed new light on North Korean President Kim Jong Un's announcement that his country was ceasing its testing program ahead of planned summit meetings with South Korean President Moon Jae-in and U.S. President Donald Trump.

The results also support some of the findings of an earlier study by another group of Chinese researchers that was published last month by the journal Geophysical Research Letters.
• None Trump says N. Korea agreed to denuclearize, but that's not the case 



Nuclear explosions release enormous amounts of heat and energy, and the North's largest test in September was believed early on to have rendered the site in northeastern North Korea unstable.

Chinese authorities have said they've detected no radiation risk from samples collected along the border. Calls to those departments were not immediately answered on Thursday.

The data in the latest Chinese study was collected following the most powerful of North Korea's six nuclear device tests on Sept. 3, which is believed to have triggered four earthquakes over the following weeks. The yield of the bomb was estimated at more than 100 kilotons of TNT, at least 10 times stronger than anything the North had tested previously. (The bomb the United States dropped on Hiroshima in 1945 had a yield of about 15 kilotons.)

The University of Science and Technology of China paper, authored by Tian Dongdong, Yao Jiawen and Wen Lianxing, said the first of those earthquakes, which occurred 8 ½ minutes after the explosion, was "an onsite collapse toward the nuclear test center," while those that followed were an "earthquake swarm" in similar locations.

"In view of the research finding that the North Korea nuclear test site at Mantapsan has collapsed, it is necessary to continue to monitor any leakage of radioactive materials that may have been caused by the collapse," the authors said in a summary dated Monday and viewed Wednesday on the university's website.

The study is peer-reviewed and has been accepted for publication by the journal Geophysical Research Letters.

The Chinese study makes sense and is based on well understood research, said Rowena Lohman, a seismologist at Cornell University who wasn't part of the work. She said she believes there's an international effort that monitors these tests for radiation.

A study published last month by the journal, authored by a team led by Liu Junqing at the earthquake bureau in Jilin province along the border with North Korea, found similar results of the Sept. 3 explosion. It described the aftershock that followed seconds later as most likely a "rapid destruction of an explosion-generated cracked rock chimney due to cavity collapse."

North Korea's nuclear tests are of special concern to Beijing, since the test site near the town of Kilju is less than 60 miles from the border with China.

North Korean nuclear tests have caused seismic events in Chinese border towns and cities, forcing evacuations of schools and offices, sparking fears of wind-born radiation and leading to a backlash among some Chinese against their country's unpredictable traditional ally.

Ties between the sides have been deteriorating for years, although Kim made a long-anticipated visit to Beijing last month after China's implementation of United Nations economic sanctions reduced trade between them by as much as 90 percent.

The quakes that followed the September test were not man-made and didn't appear to cause any damage in the area. The region isn't one where earthquakes naturally occur and no quakes were detected after the five smaller nuclear tests North Korea has conducted since 2006.

Kune Yull Suh, a professor of nuclear engineering at Seoul National University, warned last year that further tests could threaten to cause a volcanic eruption at Mount Paektu, which is about 60 miles away.

On Saturday, North Korea announced it will close its nuclear testing facility and suspend nuclear and intercontinental ballistic missile tests - a move welcomed by Trump as "big progress" - and which comes ahead of the planned summit between him and Kim.

However, the North stopped short of suggesting it will give up its nuclear weapons or scale back its production of missiles and their related components.</s>BEIJING — Research by Chinese geologists suggests that the mountain above North Korea's main nuclear test site has likely collapsed, rendering it unsafe for further testing and requiring that it be monitored for any leaking radiation.

The findings by the scientists at the University of Science and Technology of China may shed new light on North Korean President Kim Jong Un's announcement that his country was ceasing its testing program ahead of planned summit meetings with South Korean President Moon Jae-in and President Donald Trump.

The results also support some of the findings of an earlier study by another group of Chinese researchers that was published last month by the journal Geophysical Research Letters.

Nuclear explosions release enormous amounts of heat and energy, and the North's largest test in September was believed early on to have rendered the site in northeastern North Korea unstable.

Chinese authorities have said they've detected no radiation risk from samples collected along the border. Calls to those departments were not immediately answered on Thursday.

The data in the latest Chinese study was collected following the most powerful of North Korea's six nuclear device tests on Sept. 3, which is believed to have triggered four earthquakes over the following weeks. The yield of the bomb was estimated at more than 100 kilotons of TNT, at least 10 times stronger than anything the North had tested previously. (The bomb the United States dropped on Hiroshima in 1945 had a yield of about 15 kilotons.)

The University of Science and Technology of China paper, authored by Tian Dongdong, Yao Jiawen and Wen Lianxing, said the first of those earthquakes, which occurred 8 ½ minutes after the explosion, was "an onsite collapse toward the nuclear test center," while those that followed were an "earthquake swarm" in similar locations.

"In view of the research finding that the North Korea nuclear test site at Mantapsan has collapsed, it is necessary to continue to monitor any leakage of radioactive materials that may have been caused by the collapse," the authors said in a summary dated Monday and viewed Wednesday on the university's website.

The study is peer-reviewed and has been accepted for publication by the journal Geophysical Research Letters.

The Chinese study makes sense and is based on well understood research, said Rowena Lohman, a seismologist at Cornell University who wasn't part of the work. She said she believes there's an international effort that monitors these tests for radiation.

A study published last month by the journal, authored by a team led by Liu Junqing at the earthquake bureau in Jilin province along the border with North Korea, found similar results of the Sept. 3 explosion. It described the aftershock that followed seconds later as most likely a "rapid destruction of an explosion-generated cracked rock chimney due to cavity collapse."

North Korea's nuclear tests are of special concern to Beijing, since the test site near the town of Kilju is less than 60 miles from the border with China.

North Korean nuclear tests have caused seismic events in Chinese border towns and cities, forcing evacuations of schools and offices, sparking fears of wind-born radiation and leading to a backlash among some Chinese against their country's unpredictable traditional ally.

Ties between the sides have been deteriorating for years, although Kim made a long-anticipated visit to Beijing last month after China's implementation of United Nations economic sanctions reduced trade between them by as much as 90 percent.

The quakes that followed the September test were not man-made and didn't appear to cause any damage in the area. The region isn't one where earthquakes naturally occur and no quakes were detected after the five smaller nuclear tests North Korea has conducted since 2006.

Kune Yull Suh, a professor of nuclear engineering at Seoul National University, warned last year that further tests could threaten to cause a volcanic eruption at Mount Paektu, which is about 60 miles away.

On Saturday, North Korea announced it will close its nuclear testing facility and suspend nuclear and intercontinental ballistic missile tests — a move welcomed by Trump as "big progress" — and which comes ahead of the planned summit between him and Kim.

However, the North stopped short of suggesting it will give up its nuclear weapons or scale back its production of missiles and their related components.</s>The announcement, made by the state-run Korean Central News Agency around dawn Saturday local time, comes ahead of a planned meeting between Kim and President Donald Trump as well as a summit with South Korean President Moon Jae-in next Friday.

Trump responded to the announcement on Twitter, saying, "This is very good news for North Korea and the World — big progress! Look forward to our Summit."

North Korea has conducted six nuclear tests, the most recent in September. The tests have sparked international condemnation, and late last year the United Nations imposed punishing sanctions on the isolated country.

In the KCNA statement, Kim said, "Every process involved with nuclear development” has been carried out, and "the means of delivery also has been conducted scientifically, resulting in the completion of nuclear weaponization," according to an NBC translation.

Kim also said the country would halt nuclear tests, and stop test-firing midrange and intercontinental ballistic missiles. "Accordingly, the northern nuclear test ground has ended its mission," he said.

Kim said, according to KCNA, that "no nuclear test and intermediate-range and inter-continental ballistic rocket test-fire are necessary for the DPRK now, given that the work for mounting nuclear warheads on ballistic rockets was finished," referring to the country's official name of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.

The development could be seen as a concession from North Korea ahead of the planned meeting between Kim and Trump, which officials said might take place in June. Details are still being discussed.

Trump and Kim traded fiery rhetoric last year and in January over North Korea’s nuclear weapons program. Kim said in a New Year’s Day address that "the entire United States is within range of our nuclear weapons, a nuclear button is always on my desk. This is reality, not a threat."

Trump responded on Twitter, saying: “Will someone from his depleted and food starved regime please inform him that I too have a Nuclear Button, but it is a much bigger & more powerful one than his, and my Button works!”

Trump said this week that he was looking forward to the proposed North Korea meeting, but also warned that he could cancel the visit, or leave while it was in progress, if he thought the meeting would not be fruitful.</s>North Korean leader Kim Jong Un watches the launch of a Hwasong-12 missile in this undated photo released by North Korea's KCNA Thomson Reuters By Phil Stewart and Haejin Choi

WASHINGTON/SEOUL (Reuters) - In declaring a unilateral freeze in missile testing, North Korea appears ready to settle for now with an imperfect nuclear arms capability, one good enough to stoke fear in the United States but which can't promise to strike U.S. targets reliably, experts say.

North Korea said on Saturday it no longer needed to conduct nuclear or intercontinental ballistic missile tests because it had reached its weapons development goals, even though U.S. officials and experts do not believe the North's program is complete.

The declaration came ahead of talks between North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and South Korea's President Moon Jae-in on Friday. Kim, whose economy is under pressure from international sanctions, is expected to meet U.S. President Donald Trump in late May or early June.

One big gap in the North's weapons program, U.S. officials say, is that Pyongyang has not proven it has a reliable re-entry vehicle that can carry a nuclear warhead to a U.S. target on an ICBM without breaking up in the atmosphere.

Still, CIA Director Mike Pompeo, who recently became the first serving U.S. official ever to meet Kim, estimated earlier this year that North Korea could need just a handful of months to become capable of staging a nuclear attack on the United States.

Cheong Seong-chang, senior research fellow at the Sejong Institute south of Seoul, said Kim's decision to halt testing was a concession, of sorts, ahead of negotiations.

"Giving up ICBM testing while your technology isn't yet complete means you are willing to give up at least that part of the missile program," he said.

But other experts argued that Kim had conceded little, arguing that he could lift the testing freeze at any time and that his nuclear program had already achieved its main goal: demonstrating enough of a nuclear missile threat to be able to stoke uncertainty in the United States.

"They say it's reliable enough, and you know what? They're right," said Joshua Pollack, a senior researcher at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies in California.

Pollack suggested that Kim only wanted the missiles to instill caution in U.S. military circles.

"And to instill caution in your enemy, it does not have to be perfect," Pollack said.

North Korea is seeking relief from international sanctions hurting its economy. In past failed deals, it agreed to give up its weapons program in exchange for aid, including fuel oil and alternative nuclear reactors, as well as security guarantees, which have included a U.S. pledge not to attack or invade.

A White House National Security Council spokesman told Reuters on Sunday the Trump administration would not make "the same mistakes of the past," suggesting North Korea would need to dismantle much of its nuclear programs for U.S. concessions.

"We are looking for substantial dismantlement of North Korea's nuclear programs first, and until denuclearization is achieved the global maximum pressure campaign will continue," the spokesman said.

Trump, who would become the first serving U.S. president to meet a North Korean leader, appeared to temper his initial enthusiasm over the test freeze by saying on Sunday that the North Korean nuclear crisis was a long way from being resolved.

Joseph Bermudez from 38 North, a Washington-based North Korea monitoring project, said North Korea's announcement of a testing freeze could be a positive step -- if it is sustained and negotiations progress.

But he cautioned against over-optimism or a sign that Pyongyang is about to dismantle its nuclear weaponry.

Even before the North's announcement, there had been a de facto freeze since Pyongyang's largest and most recent nuclear test in September and its last missile test in late November.

"It doesn't mean that they've given up their ballistic missile program at all," Bermudez said.

"It simply means that they're not going to test at the present time and that's probably based on the belief that they can extract concessions at the upcoming summit."</s>Last weekend, North Korea suspended its nuclear tests and shut down the site where the last six detonations took place: underneath Mount Mantap, in the country’s northeast.

The reasons are ostensibly diplomatic, pointing to a thaw in relations between Kim Jong-un’s regime and South Korea and the West, but some noted that Pyongyang might have also been worried that the mountain was at risk of collapsing, as it visibly shifted during the last nuclear test. However, two separate groups of Chinese scientists now say Mount Mantap did in fact collapse after that detonation.

That means there’s a risk of radioactive contamination spreading not only within North Korea, but to other countries in the region. The site is not far from North Korea’s borders with China and Russia.

According to geologists from the University of Science and Technology of China, the collapse took place minutes after Kim Jong-un’s regime conducted its last nuclear test in September of last year.

The test of the 100-kiloton bomb, which led Chinese seismologists to register a 6.3 magnitude earthquake, apparently opened up a hole of up to 656 feet in diameter. Part of the mountain then fell into the hole.

The findings of the team, led by renowned seismologist Wen Lianxing, are set to be published next month in the journal Geophysical Research Letters.

According to the Hong Kong-based South China Morning Post, another team from the China Earthquake Administration reckons the collapse created a “chimney” that could allow the escape of fallout. The publication quoted researcher Zhao Lianfeng from the Chinese Academy of Sciences as saying the site was “wrecked” beyond repair.

So Pyongyang’s renouncement of land-based nuclear tests, for now, appears to be motivated by more than mere diplomatic concerns.</s>North Korean leader Kim Jong Un watches the launch of a Hwasong-12 missile in this undated photo released by North Korea's Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) on September 16, 2017. KCNA via REUTERS

WASHINGTON/SEOUL (Reuters) - In declaring a unilateral freeze in missile testing, North Korea appears ready to settle for now with an imperfect nuclear arms capability, one good enough to stoke fear in the United States but which can't promise to strike U.S. targets reliably, experts say.

North Korea said on Saturday it no longer needed to conduct nuclear or intercontinental ballistic missile tests because it had reached its weapons development goals, even though U.S. officials and experts do not believe the North's program is complete.

The declaration came ahead of talks between North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and South Korea's President Moon Jae-in on Friday. Kim, whose economy is under pressure from international sanctions, is expected to meet U.S. President Donald Trump in late May or early June.

One big gap in the North's weapons program, U.S. officials say, is that Pyongyang has not proven it has a reliable re-entry vehicle that can carry a nuclear warhead to a U.S. target on an ICBM without breaking up in the atmosphere.

Still, CIA Director Mike Pompeo, who recently became the first serving U.S. official ever to meet Kim, estimated earlier this year that North Korea could need just a handful of months to become capable of staging a nuclear attack on the United States.

Cheong Seong-chang, senior research fellow at the Sejong Institute south of Seoul, said Kim's decision to halt testing was a concession, of sorts, ahead of negotiations.

"Giving up ICBM testing while your technology isn't yet complete means you are willing to give up at least that part of the missile program," he said.

But other experts argued that Kim had conceded little, arguing that he could lift the testing freeze at any time and that his nuclear program had already achieved its main goal: demonstrating enough of a nuclear missile threat to be able to stoke uncertainty in the United States.

"They say it's reliable enough, and you know what? They're right," said Joshua Pollack, a senior researcher at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies in California.

Pollack suggested that Kim only wanted the missiles to instill caution in U.S. military circles.

"And to instill caution in your enemy, it does not have to be perfect," Pollack said.

North Korea is seeking relief from international sanctions hurting its economy. In past failed deals, it agreed to give up its weapons program in exchange for aid, including fuel oil and alternative nuclear reactors, as well as security guarantees, which have included a U.S. pledge not to attack or invade.

A White House National Security Council spokesman told Reuters on Sunday the Trump administration would not make "the same mistakes of the past," suggesting North Korea would need to dismantle much of its nuclear programs for U.S. concessions.

"We are looking for substantial dismantlement of North Korea's nuclear programs first, and until denuclearization is achieved the global maximum pressure campaign will continue," the spokesman said.

Trump, who would become the first serving U.S. president to meet a North Korean leader, appeared to temper his initial enthusiasm over the test freeze by saying on Sunday that the North Korean nuclear crisis was a long way from being resolved.

Joseph Bermudez from 38 North, a Washington-based North Korea monitoring project, said North Korea's announcement of a testing freeze could be a positive step -- if it is sustained and negotiations progress.

But he cautioned against over-optimism or a sign that Pyongyang is about to dismantle its nuclear weaponry.

Even before the North's announcement, there had been a de facto freeze since Pyongyang's largest and most recent nuclear test in September and its last missile test in late November.

"It doesn't mean that they've given up their ballistic missile program at all," Bermudez said.

"It simply means that they're not going to test at the present time and that's probably based on the belief that they can extract concessions at the upcoming summit."</s>BY PRABASI NEPALI

 At a time when North Korea’s leader Kim Jong-un is preparing for historic summits with the presidents of South Korea and the United States, the country’s state TV made the surprise announcement early last Saturday local time that North Korea will stop nuclear tests and launches of intercontinental ballistic missiles with immediate effect. It also said a test site would be shut down. This has received a broad international welcome. Leader Kim Jong-un said further tests were not necessary, as the North had effectively demonstrated it had functioning nuclear weapons, implying that it was a de facto ‘nuclear power’, whatever the international community thought. Kim said North Korea has “reached the target stage, where the nation and the people’s safety is reliably secured and the next stage is building on efforts to denuclearize, “which is the peace-loving platform of our party.” In clear terms, this was a unilateral declaration that the isolated nation now had achieved ‘nuclear deterrence’ vis-à-vis America. North Korea’s announcement could be a negotiating gambit in advance of the upcoming summits. It is also another indication that, despite rampant smuggling across the China-North Korea border – the latest economic sanctions are beginning to hurt.

 US President Donald Trump described the move as “good news” for North Korea and the world. He also said he was looking forward to a face-to-face meeting with Kim this coming June. He had already sent CIA Director Mike Pompeo (and nominee for Secretary of State) secretly to Pyongyang to lay the groundwork for the summit. South Korea said it was meaningful progress. The European Union (EU) said it was “positive”, but called for ‘complete denuclearization’ – a very vague characterization, meaning different things to different countries.

 Kim Jong-un and South Korean President Moon Jae-in are due to meet this Friday for the first inter-Korean summit in over a decade. Moon’s office said the North’s decision would “contribute to creating a very positive environment for the success of the upcoming South-North summit and North-United States summit.” European Union foreign policy commissioner Federica Mogherini said it was a “long sought-after step” that should lead to “verifiable and irreversible denuclearization”. The call was repeated by the UK. The statement from the British government added: “We hope this indicates an effort to negotiate in good faith.” The US and its allies – above all South Korea and Japan, where US

 nuclear weapons are not stationed – have exhorted North Korea to abandon nuclear weapons.

 China, North Korea’s main ally and sponsor welcomed the decision, and said it believed the move would “help ameliorate the situation on the peninsula”. The official Xinhua News Agency quoted Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu Kang as saying Beijing wishes for North Korea to continue to achieve results in the development of its economy and improving the living standards of its people. He says China will support North Korea through dialogue and consultations with “relevant parties” to resolve their concerns and improve relations. Russia’s foreign ministry also welcomed the sudden development, but called on the US and South Korea to reduce their military activity in the region [North-East Asia]. Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said that “North Korea’s announcement is forward motion that I’d like to welcome,” but added that results matter: “But what’s important is that this motion leads to complete, verifiable and irreversible [destruction] of [North Korea’s] nuclear and missile programmes.” However for this to be [eventually] achieved, long and dogged negotiations will be necessary and not instant success Trumpian techniques.

 Kim’s statement echoes a previous announcement made during a New Year address in which he declared his nuclear and ballistic missile programme completed. However, although Pyongyang said it would abolish one of its nuclear test sites, there is no indication it is planning to destroy its existing nuclear weapons. The decision to halt missile tests is also aimed at pursuing economic growth, according to the country’s Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) news agency. Kim reportedly pledged to “concentrate all efforts” on developing a socialist economy during last Friday’s meeting of the Workers’ Party.

 North Korea has conducted six nuclear tests, the most recent in September 2017. The tests have sparked international condemnation, and late last year the United Nations Security Council imposed punishing sanctions on the isolated country. In the KCNA statement, Kim said, “Every process involved with nuclear development” has been carried out, and “the means of delivery also has been conducted scientifically, resulting in the completion of nuclear weaponization.” Since the country would halt nuclear tests and stop test-firing midrange and intercontinental ballistic missiles, “accordingly, the northern nuclear test ground has ended its mission.”Kim said, according to KCNA, that “no nuclear test and intermediate-range and intercontinental ballistic rocket test-fire are necessary for the DPRK [Democratic People’s Republic of Korea] now, given that the work for mounting nuclear warheads on ballistic rockets was finished.”

 The suspension of nuclear tests could be subterfuge, but also a sign Pyongyang is serious about talks. The development could be seen as a concession from North Korea ahead of the planned meeting between Kim and Trump, which officials said might take place in June. Details are still being discussed. Trump and Kim traded fiery rhetoric last year and in January over North Korea’s nuclear weapons programme. Kim said in a New Year’s Day address that “the entire United States is within range of our nuclear weapons, a nuclear button is always on my desk. This is reality, not a threat.” In his infantile manner, Trump responded on Twitter, saying: “Will someone from his depleted and food starved regime please inform him that I too have a Nuclear Button, but it is a much bigger & more powerful one than his, and my Button works!” Trump said last week that he was looking forward to the proposed North Korea meeting, but also warned that he could cancel the visit, or leave while it was in progress, if he thought the meeting would not be fruitful.” This is indeed a strange posture to adopt – expecting too much in advance in very complicated negotiations which require time and patience. Of course, US negotiators from the Clinton and George W. Bush administrations have been fooled before by North Korean promises to disable nuclear and missile facilities, only to discover later they simply relocated their programmes to other underground sites. But this time around the situation is quite different and more promising – if Trump does not make a mess of it all! The Trump administration must fully draw on the expertise of professional analysts at the CIA, the National Security Council, and those remaining at the decimated State Department. It is indeed an unexpected golden opportunity and a unique chance for significant change for a peninsula living on a nuclear precipice for decades – if not full denuclearization, then at least some form of verifiable containment.

 The writer can be reached at: prabasinepali43@gmail.com
Scientists from the University of Science and Technology of China state that North Korea's nuclear test site, the Punggye-ri Nuclear Test Site at Mount Mantap, would have collapsed just minutes after the country performed its sixth nuclear test and opened up a hole of up to 656 feet (200 m) in diameter. It has been one of the possible reasons given for North Korea agreement to suspend nuclear and missile tests.