North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un says his country has developed a hydrogen bomb, but senior defense and intelligence officials poured cold water on that claim.
There is no evidence that North Korea has made such a weapon, they said. And while the communist country has some level of nuclear capability, that does not mean they have succeeded in building a working atomic bomb.
A short time later, the White House also expressed doubts, saying their intelligence "calls into serious question those claims."
The official Korea Central News Agency reported Kim's claims as he toured the Phyongchon Revolutionary Site and touted the feats of his late father Kim Jong Il and grandfather Kim Il Sung.
The White House disputed the North Korean claim to have tested a hydrogen bomb. “The initial analysis that’s been conducted of the events that were reported overnight is not consistent with North Korean claims of a successful hydrogen bomb test,” said Josh Earnest, White House spokesman.
But the test, which sparked off swift international condemnation, further underlines the world powers’ dilemma in dealing with the maverick state’s long-running but escalating nuclear programme.
State television hailed the test of what it described as a miniaturised hydrogen nuclear device as a “national epoch-making event” that would secure North Korea’s “rights for survival against threats from the US and other countries”. It also screened a note, apparently handwritten by Kim Jong- Un, the country’s young leader, ordering the test to go forward.
Nato, the UN nuclear watchdog, the EU, US and other nations all said a test would clearly violate resolutions by the UN Security Council, which was convened for an emergency meeting.
China, Pyongyang’s chief ally, declared it was “resolutely” opposed to the test and would summon North Korea’s ambassador.
There is no evidence that North Korea has made such a weapon, they said. And while the communist country has some level of nuclear capability, that does not mean they have succeeded in building a working atomic bomb.
A short time later, the White House also expressed doubts, saying their intelligence "calls into serious question those claims."The official Korea Central News Agency reported Kim's claims as he toured the Phyongchon Revolutionary Site and touted the feats of his late father Kim Jong Il and grandfather Kim Il Sung.
The White House disputed the North Korean claim to have tested a hydrogen bomb. “The initial analysis that’s been conducted of the events that were reported overnight is not consistent with North Korean claims of a successful hydrogen bomb test,” said Josh Earnest, White House spokesman.
But the test, which sparked off swift international condemnation, further underlines the world powers’ dilemma in dealing with the maverick state’s long-running but escalating nuclear programme.
State television hailed the test of what it described as a miniaturised hydrogen nuclear device as a “national epoch-making event” that would secure North Korea’s “rights for survival against threats from the US and other countries”. It also screened a note, apparently handwritten by Kim Jong- Un, the country’s young leader, ordering the test to go forward.
Nato, the UN nuclear watchdog, the EU, US and other nations all said a test would clearly violate resolutions by the UN Security Council, which was convened for an emergency meeting.
China, Pyongyang’s chief ally, declared it was “resolutely” opposed to the test and would summon North Korea’s ambassador.
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