North Korea issues martial law amid nuclear testing rumors
Mariya Karimjee, GlobalPost
Jan. 31, 2013 Updated: Aug. 27, 2017 1:06 p.m.
In this Jan. 28, 2013 image made from video, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un delivers opening remarks at the Fourth Meeting of Secretaries of Cells of the Workers' Party of Korea, in Pyongyang, North Korea. Kim convened top security and foreign affairs officials and ordered them to take "substantial and high-profile important state measures," state media said Sunday, fueling speculation that he plans to push forward with a threat to explode a nuclear device in defiance of the United Nations. (AP Photo/KRT via AP Video) NORTH KOREA OUT, TV OUTAP
Kim Jong Un has told his frontline troops to prepare for war and has issued martial law for North Korea, South Korean media has reported.
According to Korea JoongAng Daily, the martial law may be a precursor to a nuclear test. The paper claims that Kim has said that the test will take place sometime between now and Tuesday.
The announcement came after Kim held an emergency meeting of his top defense and security officials on Saturday, the Telegraph reported.
North Korea had vowed to boost its military and nuclear capabilities after the UN Security Council tightened sanctions against the nation, following a resolution condemning their December rocket-launch.
The New York Times reported that these measures would most likely be a third nuclear test. North Korea has tested its nuclear capabilities twice before, one in 2006, and another in 2009.
An analysis of recent satellite photos by the US-Korea Institute at Johns Hopkins Schol of Advanced International Studies showed that North Korea was ready to test a weapon in the next few weeks, Bloomberg Businessweek reported.
Though many analysts predicted that the test would occur on Feb. 16, the birthday of former leader Kim Jong Il, the move to put the country under martial law indicates that the test may come sooner.
Meanwhile, the prospect of the nuclear test has China a little worried. According to the BBC, "Pyongyang is intentionally creating tensions before the incoming South Korean President Park Geun-hye has a chance to engage with the North or US President Barack Obama has a chance to shape his North Korea policy for his second tenure," China's Global Times newspaper said.