Korea tested a hydrogen bomb. The world has become even closer to nuclear war: what threatens the testing of a hydrogen bomb in the DPRK

On September 3, seismologists from a number of countries recorded unusual tremors in North Korea. As reported by Yonhap, according to the Korea Meteorological Agency, located in South Korea, the power of the earthquake was 5.6 points. Geophysicists drew attention to the fact that seismic activity was recorded near the city of Kilju in the province of Hamgyong-buk-do, where the North Korean nuclear test site is located. The data of South Korean scientists was confirmed by their colleagues from the USA, Japan and China. According to the Chinese side, the power of the shock was 6.3 points.

The earthquake occurred around 6:30 Moscow time. Chinese and South Korean scientists also recorded a second earthquake of lower power - about 4.6 points. According to experts from the China Seismological Center (CENC), the second earthquake occurred at 6:38 Moscow time - presumably, it was a collapse and subsidence of the rock that collapsed as a result of the first shock.

According to the Primorsky Department of Hydrometeorology and Environmental Monitoring, faint echoes of the earthquake in North Korea were also felt in Vladivostok. However, the background radiation in Russian Primorye is within normal limits.

“After the alleged nuclear test in the DPRK, no excess background radiation was recorded in the Primorsky Territory,” the department said in a statement.

According to the United States Geological Survey, the tremors in North Korea are nothing more than a “possible explosion.”

“Unless what happened is an explosion, the National Earthquake Center of the United States Geological Survey cannot detect it (an earthquake. — RT) type,” seismologists said.

Chinese experts also reported a high-power “explosion” as the probable cause of two tremors.

The Japanese military noted that the North Korean bomb had a yield of 70 kilotons. The South Korean side estimated the power of the charge at 100 kilotons, and Norwegian seismologists talk about the figure at 120 kilotons - this is six times more powerful than the bomb dropped by the United States on Nagasaki in 1945 (21 kilotons).

A council on internal and external security issues was urgently convened in Seoul in connection with the testing of nuclear weapons by Pyongyang.

As South Korea's Yonhap news agency reported, North Korea confirmed its first hydrogen bomb test and called it "absolutely successful." The Daily Telegraph reports that North Korean television also reported the successful test of a thermonuclear charge.

“The power (of the explosion. — RT) 10 or 20 times more than in previous tests,” Seoul National University professor Kun She told Reuters. “This scale indicates a test of a hydrogen bomb,” the expert confirms the media information.

Juche motifs

“The hydrogen bomb test was conducted to test and confirm the accuracy and performance of the power control technology and internal structure of the hydrogen bomb intended for placement on intercontinental ballistic missiles, the production of which recently began,” Yonhap quoted the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) as saying. ), the official news agency of the DPRK.

Shortly before the tremors were recorded, KCNA posted information that the country had developed a new compact hydrogen warhead that could be placed on intercontinental ballistic missiles. North Korea conducted two tests of missiles with a range of up to 10,000 km, capable of hitting not only American bases on the island of Guam in the Pacific Ocean, but also the west coast of the United States in July.

• North Korean ballistic missile launch
• KCNA/Reuters

The new thermonuclear warhead was personally inspected by the country's leader Kim Jong-un, visiting the Nuclear Research Institute. “The Supreme Leader watched as a hydrogen bomb was installed on an ICBM,” the KCNA statement emphasizes.

“All components of the hydrogen bomb were made by domestic manufacturers, based on Juche ideas. Thus, the country can produce powerful nuclear weapons in as many quantities as it pleases,” KCNA quotes the North Korean leader.

Immediately after reports of the development of a new nuclear bomb in the DPRK, the leaders of Japan and the United States held telephone conversations on the North Korean issue. Donald Trump and Shinzo Abe “discussed the growing threat from the DPRK” and ways to put pressure on Pyongyang, the White House press service said.

In turn, Japanese Foreign Minister Taro Kono called the DPRK's actions absolutely unforgivable and called on Russia to put more pressure on North Korea, in particular to consider introducing an oil embargo on Pyongyang.

However, this gesture, taking into account the history of the region, may be perceived in Pyongyang as a provocation, against the backdrop of ongoing exercises by the United States and South Korea.

“The fuel embargo is a direct preparation for war,” Konstantin Asmolov, a leading researcher at the Center for Korean Studies at the Institute of Far Eastern Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences, told RT. “Because if you’ve studied history, you know the role the American fuel embargo played in Japan’s entry into the war with the United States in 1941.”

“Here, both technical and political reasons are intertwined,” political scientist Irina Lantsova explained the DPRK’s nuclear test right now. “The main reason is pressure and threats from the United States, forcing Pyongyang to strengthen its defense.”

First Deputy Chairman of the State Duma Defense Committee Alexander Sherin said in an interview with RT that the United States provoked the DPRK.

“Here we must say a big thank you to the United States, because they put the squeeze on the country. It was they who created such conditions when the state begins to shrink into a ball and spend money on defense. Let American soldiers and bases go to the US borders, and there will be no such arms race in the world,” the deputy emphasized.

“Now North Korea finds itself in a situation where it needs to be guaranteed to protect itself, and in order to be guaranteed to receive this protection, it is necessary to conduct tests,” Lantsova notes. — Politics plays an indirect role here. In this case, it’s not even a demonstration, but a reaction to what’s happening.”

“Kim’s goals are clear: to try now, in a very short time, to bring his nuclear missile program to such a level that it would be clear to everyone that there is no third option - either war begins, or negotiations must be negotiated with North Korea,” noted Konstantin Asmolov.

“We must understand that Kim is not going to communize the south or portray the main villain of Indian cinema in a fit of psychopathy; his goals are more pragmatic,” says the expert.

• KCNA/Reuters

According to Asmolov, Pyongyang believes that, having received nuclear warheads capable of reaching the United States, it will reach a level of nuclear deterrence similar to the US-Chinese one. And then, despite the contradictions, the option of war between the two countries will be excluded.

We understand, but we don’t accept

“It cannot but be regrettable that the leadership of the DPRK, through its actions aimed at undermining the global non-proliferation regime, creates a serious threat to peace and security on the Korean Peninsula and in the region as a whole. Continuing such a line is fraught with serious consequences for the DPRK itself,” the Russian Foreign Ministry commented on the nuclear test in the DPRK.

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) called Pyongyang's actions "an extremely sad act" and "a complete disregard for the repeated demands of the international community."

According to the Japanese Foreign Ministry, Tokyo has already sent a protest to Pyongyang through diplomatic channels in connection with the test of a thermonuclear charge. Shinzo Abe ordered to keep in touch with representatives of the United States, Russia and China in order to quickly respond to the developing crisis.

• Prime Minister of Japan Shinzo Abe
• Reuters

“The actions of the DPRK are understandable, but unacceptable, because such a policy, firstly, greatly aggravates tensions, and secondly, undermines the world order, which is based on the authority of the UN, whose resolutions are ignored, and on the fact that nuclear weapons should be who is supposed to,” notes Konstantin Asmolov. “That is why Moscow and Beijing may question the essence of the sanctions, but believe that every such action should be formally condemned.”

According to the expert, the DPRK chose the date of the test poorly. “The congress of the Communist Party of China is coming up, today is the BRICS summit - I think this will cause a certain emotional irritation in Moscow and Beijing and, naturally, we should expect a new round of tightening sanctions, although there is nowhere to tighten them further,” Asmolov believes.

Deputy Chairman of the Federation Council Committee on Security and Defense Franz Klintsevich, in a conversation with RT, called the DPRK nuclear test a provocation.

“If earlier it was a skirmish, which, in my opinion, could hardly lead to any serious conflicts, then the tests that took place today are already a provocation on the part of North Korea. This is really serious now. I think this can no longer be allowed to happen. There is no alternative to the negotiation process and peaceful conversation. Today we need to sit down at the negotiating table and solve this problem, because North Korea’s defense of its sovereignty in this way can lead to a very serious conflict,” Klintsevich emphasized.

Trump will answer

“What is Trump going to do now? — Increase pressure on Russia and China to achieve some serious joint actions. The bet is that the irritation of Moscow and Beijing with such a move by North Korea will make them more accommodating in terms of American proposals,” believes Konstantin Asmolov.

In turn, South Korea has already announced that it will seek tougher sanctions against the DPRK - Yonhap reports this with reference to the head of the National Security Department of the South Korean Presidential Administration, Chung Eui-yong.

The agency notes that the Korean official has already held appropriate consultations with his American counterpart, President Trump's national security adviser, General Herbert McMaster. Yonhap also reports that South Korea will seek to host the “most powerful tactical weapons” of the United States.

“We are facing a very serious escalation, one of the most difficult in the last six months,” Irina Lantsova predicts the consequences of North Korea’s new nuclear tests.

• US President Donald Trump
• Reuters

According to the expert, the main problem now is that after a number of loud statements from the United States, the leaders of this country have seriously limited their space for maneuver and will most likely be forced to escalate matters. “The problem is that Trump has threatened so much, promised so much, that he will now have to do something,” says the political scientist.

“This is not the first nuclear test - this is the sixth nuclear test, and it has always been possible to do something diplomatically,” the expert notes. “But over the past six months there have been so many menacing promises to do something that we will now have to answer for our words,” Lantsova believes.

“We should expect greater emotional involvement,” notes Asmolov. According to the expert, despite the expected tightening of rhetoric from the United States, the likelihood of a new war in Korea is now “only” 35%. “I used to say that the probability of conflict on the peninsula is approximately 30%, but now it has increased by five percent,” the expert believes.

North Korea took US President Donald Trump's speech at the UN about his readiness to “completely destroy” the DPRK as a declaration of war and is ready to retaliate. One of them could be carrying out the most powerful hydrogen bomb explosion in the history of Pyongyang’s nuclear tests in the Pacific Ocean. This possibility was allowed by North Korean Foreign Minister Lee Yong-ho, who arrived in New York to speak at a meeting of the UN General Assembly, Yonhap agency reports. According to him, what exactly North Korea's response will be will be determined by the country's leader Kim Jong-un.

On September 19, Trump, speaking from the UN rostrum, noted that the United States, “possessing enormous strength and patience,” could “completely destroy” the DPRK. The American president called Kim Jong-un a “rocket man” whose mission is “suicidal for himself and his regime.”

The DPRK's first reaction to these statements was disgusting: the Foreign Ministry compared Trump's promises to the “barking of a dog” that cannot frighten Pyongyang. However, a day later, the official North Korean news agency KCNA published Kim Jong-un’s commentary on the words of the American president. He described Trump as a “political heretic,” “a bully and a troublemaker,” threatening to wipe out a sovereign state. The North Korean leader advised his American colleague to “be careful in the choice of words and be attentive to the statements that he makes in front of the whole world.” Trump, according to Pyongyang, is an “outcast and a gangster” who is unsuitable for the country’s top command. The leader of the DPRK perceived his speech as a US refusal to peace, called it “the most outrageous declaration of war” and promised to seriously consider “super-harsh retaliatory measures.” Such measures, according to the DPRK Foreign Minister, could be a super-powerful test of a hydrogen bomb in the Pacific Ocean.

At the end of August, Pyongyang, commenting on the launch of its ballistic missile, which flew over Japanese territory for the first time, noted that this was “the first step in the military operation of the Korean People’s Army in the Pacific Ocean and a prelude to the containment of Guam,” where US military bases are located.

Pyongyang's threat to test a hydrogen bomb in the Pacific Ocean came hours after Trump promised to further tighten sanctions against North Korea. New restrictions by the UN Security Council were introduced only on September 11. Then the world organization limited North Korea’s ability to import more than 2 million barrels of petroleum products per year, and also imposed a ban on the export of all its textile products and labor, which annually brought in at least $1.2 billion. The UN also authorized the freezing of cargo transported under the North Korean flag in in case of refusal of the ship's command to perform an inspection.

These measures were unanimously supported by all 15 member countries of the UN Security Council. However, initially the United States demanded more, in particular, it insisted on a complete ban on the import of petroleum products and personal sanctions against Kim Jong-un. On September 21, Trump announced that he was expanding his administration’s authority to impose sanctions against North Korea. His order aims to cut off financial flows that "fuel North Korea's efforts" to develop nuclear weapons. In particular, Washington intends to tighten sanctions against individuals, enterprises and banks that do business with North Korea, Fox News reports. Separately, we are talking about suppliers of technology and information to the DPRK.

The signing of Trump's sanctions decree was preceded by his consultations on increasing pressure on North Korea with South Korean leader Moon Jae-in and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.

Until now, North Korea has conducted nuclear tests underground. The last, most powerful, occurred on September 3. Initially, experts estimated its power at 100–120 kt, which is 5–6 times stronger than the previous one, but later increased their estimates to 250 kt. The magnitude of the explosion, initially estimated at 4.8, was later adjusted to 6.1. These estimates confirmed that the DPRK was able to create a hydrogen bomb, since the power of a conventional atomic bomb is limited to 30 kt. Pyongyang officially announced the successful testing of a hydrogen bomb - a warhead for a missile.

Even after the DPRK's underground nuclear test, South Korean observers recorded the release of radioactive gas xenon-133 into the atmosphere, although they stipulated that its concentration was not dangerous to health and the environment. At the same time, an explosion with a power of 250 kt is close to the maximum that the North Korean nuclear test site Punggye-ri could withstand, experts noted. On satellite images, they recorded landslides and rock subsidence at the underground testing sites, which could potentially lead to a violation of its integrity and the release of radionuclides to the surface. How many more tests he can withstand is unknown.

Until now, the presence of a hydrogen bomb has been officially recognized by five countries that have the status of nuclear powers - the USA, Russia, Great Britain, France and China. They are permanent members of the UN Security Council with the right of veto. The completion of the development of such weapons in the DPRK is not recognized.

On September 3, North Korea conducted its sixth full-fledged nuclear test. About the fact that it could be blown up, however, the North Koreans would not be themselves if they had not prepared a lot of surprises this time. An expert on the website of the Zvezda TV channel, Vladimir Khrustalev, examines in detail the nuclear test of North Korea. Sunday morning shock On Sunday morning, even before the test took place, the North Korean media stunned the world with a sensation. The main news agency of the DPRK published photographs showing a thermonuclear charge. And not just a thermonuclear charge, but one suitable for installation on a ballistic missile. The Hwasong-14 intercontinental missile was primarily named as the launch vehicle. This was indicated by photographs where a diagram for installing a charge in the head of a ballistic missile was visible, and the caption above the diagram also indicated the type of carrier. Most likely, the photo showed a mock-up of the device, and not the device itself, since some details in the high-quality photographs looked strange for real charge. And, on the other hand, the equipped thermonuclear charge as part of the structure has a number of elements that require, due to safety precautions, caution and access to the charge only by specialists. We are talking about the possible presence of a plutonium part in the assembled structure (plutonium creates a noticeable level of ionizing radiation ), a deuterium-tritium gas mixture (tritium is also not particularly good for health), as well as the mandatory presence there of a system for detonating the nuclear unit of the structure. The composition of the nuclear unit also necessarily includes a layer of conventional explosive and a system for detonating it. In other words, this part requires careful handling, even if radioactive materials are not placed in the structure. The device itself, which received the name “peanut” among Western experts due to its shape, and “dumbbell” among Russians, really looks like a thermonuclear charge. It clearly shows the external automation unit, connected by cables to the main part, which includes the nuclear (the one that makes up the larger half of the “dumbbell”) and thermonuclear nodes (the “smaller” half). The activation of the first creates conditions for the operation of the second with a large release of energy. No one except the developers knows what is inside the device itself. And the point here is not that the design is strange or that the experts remain silent. Everything is simpler: there are several workable versions of the device shown. What is even more interesting: official materials reported that the device has more than one operation mode. That is, at reduced and at rated power. There are different options for solving this problem, but the main thing is that, in general, there is nothing supernatural in creating a device with two operation modes.
Of course, like any announcement from the DPRK, this “leak of information” gave rise to fierce debate on the topic of how realistic this demonstration is and when to expect tests. Among smart experts (those whose predictions regarding military programs usually came true), a consensus emerged in the very first hours: “If the North Koreans have succeeded in working on thermonuclear charges, there must be a successful test.” Moreover, the key feature should be an abnormal power compared to past tests. Since the end of 2016, attempts have been made to guess what a thermonuclear breakthrough by the DPRK would look like for external observers. The answer was simple. The observed magnitude of the test will be 5.7 conventional units or greater. And if it’s 6 or more, then it’s definitely something thermonuclear. In general, everyone began to wait for the test, but no one expected that it would happen a few hours after the announcement of photographs of the thermonuclear charge. Nuclear "seismic event" Sunday's test was an immediate shock. From the USA and China, reports began to come in about the maximum measured power of the tremors at the level of 6.3 conventional units. Other countries have measured tremors ranging from 5.7 to 6.3. According to reports from some seismic stations, they observed a seismic event in the DPRK with a parameter of 6.4 conventional units. Such a strong difference is normal. The fact is that the lithosphere is a less homogeneous medium than the hydrosphere, so vibrations propagate differently, which means that in different directions and at different distances there will be certain differences in the received signals.
The second problem is that, depending on the depth, even at the same test site, an explosion of the same power (in TNT equivalent) will also produce “seismic events” of different recorded power. The third problem is that only the North Koreans know the power of the explosion quite accurately specialists. Since the conversion of measured seismic parameters into kilotons of TNT largely depends on what correction factors are used for calculations. But this does not mean that nothing can be said about this. First, a significant fact should be noted: the lowest theoretical limit on the explosion power is not below 50 kt. Moreover, this is clearly with all permissible theoretical underestimations. They insist on a figure of 50 kt in South Korea. But Seoul's estimates always show signs of deliberate severe underestimation. Yes, and they are made on the basis of signals less powerful than those recorded in other directions from the DPRK nuclear test site (geological features). Secondly, most open estimates by independent experts give the most probable figure of 100 kt and higher. So the Norwegian NORSAR gave an estimate of 120 kt, Chinese geologists - 108 kt. Among American experts, the interval of 100-150 kt is considered the most reliable.
Thirdly, there is an indirect sign. Seismic echoes were noticeably felt not only in China. In other countries closest to North Korea, at a time roughly coinciding with the explosion in the DPRK, users began writing on social networks that they felt a slight vibration in the house. Of course, many did not feel or notice anything, because the strength of the vibrations was not so great (the type of soil on which the building or the observer was located directly plays a serious role here), but still there are witnesses to this phenomenon. The distance at which the echoes were observed from an explosion, indicates the approximate level of energy release during an explosion. This is definitely a different order of power than in all previous tests. What does a nuclear test mean for North Korea? First of all, we can confidently talk about the enormous success of the DPRK military-industrial complex. North Korean nuclear scientists have managed to radically improve the quality parameters of their charges, both in terms of increasing the achieved power by an order of magnitude and in terms of the power per unit weight of the charge. Secondly, this means radically different possibilities for causing damage to the aggressor during retaliatory nuclear missile strikes. Bombs of “Hiroshima power” do not look as menacing to modern cities as they did decades ago. But thermonuclear charges, with their power, are capable of quite confidently causing enormous destruction over long distances in modern large cities, built mainly from reinforced concrete. This means that in order to cause obviously unacceptable damage, it is necessary that fewer charges break through the missile defense system than with an order of magnitude lower power of warheads. And the presence of such an enemy’s ability to cause damage usually greatly reduces the desire to attack him.
Thirdly, thermonuclear charges are the best (possible) generators of electromagnetic pulse. Detonation of a thermonuclear charge at a suitable height can cause damage to electrical and electronic equipment over an area of ​​a million square kilometers or more. In this case, there is no direct damage to people by the shock wave and light radiation. A kind of opposite of the neutron bomb from urban legends, which supposedly kills people while preserving material values. Only here the infrastructure, communications, machines and equipment are turned off. But people are not amazed. And this does not count the damage to the orbital group. An ideal weapon against advanced opponents, especially the most technologically advanced, completely immersed in the “digital era.” Moreover, to detonate a charge at altitudes of 100 km and above, it is not necessary to have even proven warheads that can survive all overloads when descending in the atmosphere. The corresponding explosion is carried out outside the atmosphere. This possibility was mentioned in materials released shortly before the test. “Our thermonuclear charge, the power of which can be adjusted from tens of kilotons to hundreds of kilotons, not only has enormous destructive power, but is also a multifunctional thermonuclear warhead, which can also deliver a super-powerful electromagnetic strike over vast distances by detonating a charge at a high altitude,” wrote the North Korean media.
Fourthly, the presence of such an option as choosing the power of the explosion creates high possibilities for choosing different targets for the optimal format of destruction with the same warhead “for the task.” This means that in the future it will greatly increase the flexibility of the nuclear arsenal. This was directly stated in the corresponding statement following the test results. “Success in testing a thermonuclear charge for equipping ICBMs is a demonstration of the qualitative development of nuclear forces, when it is possible to freely control the power of a thermonuclear charge depending on the object and target of the strike. This is a very significant milestone in the improvement of nuclear armed forces,” wrote the North Korean press. Fifthly, for the creation of effective intercontinental nuclear missile weapons, a compact and powerful thermonuclear unit is a critically important stage. North Korea has already successfully tested the Hwasong-14 missile twice in July. And now the thermonuclear unit has also been tested. This test was carried out to confirm the operation and reliability of new technologies used in the power control system and the design of a new design for installation in the warhead of an intercontinental ballistic missile. So the United States and its allies can now be sincerely congratulated. Their policy towards the DPRK was crowned with another resounding “success”.

On Sunday, September 3, it conducted its sixth nuclear test. According to South Korean and Western media reports, an earthquake with a magnitude of 5.6 to 6.3 was recorded in the country. If the nuclear test was actually carried out, this means that it was the most powerful in the history of the DPRK.

Earlier, South Korean intelligence admitted that the DPRK authorities had completed preparations for conducting a nuclear test in two underground tunnels at the Punggye-ri test site in the northeast of the country.

Subsequently, the DPRK officially announced the successful testing of a hydrogen bomb. The corresponding statement was announced on Sunday, September 3, on the air of the DPRK Central Television. It is noted that the tested hydrogen charge could be placed on an intercontinental ballistic missile, TASS reports.

TESTS MORE POWERFUL THAN BOMB EXPLOSIONS IN NAGASAKI AND HIROSHIMA

Apparently, the yield of North Korea's sixth nuclear test was 100 kilotons, which is about 4-5 times more powerful than the explosion of a nuclear bomb dropped on Nagasaki, Japan in 1945 (21 kilotons), Yonhap news agency reports. At the same time, the yield of the bomb dropped on Hiroshima was 18 kilotons. Some media reports that the bomb yield of North Korea's sixth nuclear test could be one megaton.

China's earthquake administration initially detected a 6.3 magnitude earthquake in North Korea and called it a "suspicious explosion." The fact is that usually the epicenter of earthquakes is located in the depths, but this time seismologists noticed that it was on the surface of the Earth.

Reuters
Japanese seismologists found that the magnitude of the earthquake was 6.3

This gave grounds for experts to conclude that the DPRK conducted its sixth nuclear test. Subsequently, North Korea itself announced an “exceptionally successful” hydrogen bomb test. According to the China Earthquake Administration, the shock occurred at about 11:30 am local time - 5:30 am - Kyiv time, Reuters reports.

TSN.ua

THE WORLD'S REACTION

Japan sent a decisive and harsh protest to the DPRK through diplomatic channels in connection with the new nuclear test. Japanese Foreign Minister Taro Kono told reporters about this.

“This is absolutely unforgivable,” said Kono, who was the first official to announce that the Japanese government believes North Korea has carried out another nuclear test.

“We have come to the conclusion that North Korea has conducted a nuclear test,” he said following an emergency meeting of the National Security Council. Taro Kono added that Pyongyang's actions are a "direct and blatant violation of UN Security Council resolutions" and stressed that "all options regarding North Korea are on the table." "We will take a serious look at how we respond [to the nuclear test]," he said.

The Japanese Foreign Minister intends to hold telephone conversations with his counterparts from the United States and South Korea in the near future. “We are now preparing [for such calls],” he noted.

Reuters
Kim Jong-un gives instructions regarding the nuclear program, file photo

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe ordered to strengthen monitoring of radiation levels and maintain constant contact with neighboring countries in connection with a possible new nuclear test by the DPRK.

Japanese Defense Minister Itsunori Onodera, in turn, said that the country's Air Self-Defense Force aircraft are currently measuring possible changes in the level of radiation in the atmosphere after the alleged North Korean nuclear test.