N. Korea conducts nuke weapons test

Published 9:00 pm Sunday, October 8, 2006

SEOUL, South Korea – North Korea said today it had performed its first nuclear weapons test, an underground explosion that defied international warnings but was hailed by the communist nation as a “great leap forward” for its people.

The reported test drew harsh rebuke from North Korea’s neighbors. The U.N. Security Council is expected to discuss the North Korean issue today, and the United States and Japan are likely to press for a resolution imposing additional sanctions on Pyongyang.

U.S. and South Korean intelligence detected a seismic event at a suspected nuclear test site in North Korea, the White House said Monday, a few hours after North Korea issued its claim.

“A North Korean nuclear test would constitute a provocative act in defiance of the will of the international community and of our call to refrain from actions that would aggravate tensions in northeast Asia,” White House spokesman Tony Snow said.

“We expect the U.N. Security Council to take immediate actions to respond to this unprovoked act,” Snow said. “The United States is closely monitoring the situation and reaffirms its commitment to protect and defend our allies in the region.”

Snow said national security adviser Stephen Hadley informed President Bush about the event shortly before 7 p.m. PDT Sunday. South Korea’s Yonhap news agency reported that the test was conducted at 6:36 p.m. PDT Sunday.

Snow declined to speculate on a possible U.S. response to a North Korean nuclear test. “At this point we’re still assessing the data and trying to figure out what happened,” he said. “A lot of this hinges on what the data tells us.”

The U.S. Geological Survey said it had recorded a magnitude-4.2 seismic event in northeastern North Korea. Australia and South Korea also said there was seismic confirmation that pointed to a nuclear test.

North Korea’s nuclear test was equivalent to 550 tons of TNT, a state-run South Korean geological institute said. The bomb the U.S. dropped on Hiroshima was equivalent to 12,500 tons of TNT.

Japan said it could not immediately confirm the test.

Although North Korea has long claimed it had the capability to produce a bomb, the reported test Monday, if confirmed, would be the first proof of its membership in a small club of nuclear-armed nations. That would dramatically alter the strategic balance of power in the region and seriously undermine global anti-proliferation efforts.

The North warned last week it would conduct a nuclear test, sparking frantic diplomatic efforts to head it off.

Condemnation of North Korea from regional powers came swiftly after the test was announced.

China, the North’s closest ally, said Beijing “resolutely opposes” the test and hopes Pyongyang will return to six-party nuclear disarmament talks.

Japan’s top government spokesman said if confirmed, the North Korean test would pose a serious threat to the stability in the region and a provocation.

South Korea’s presidential spokesman says Seoul will “sternly respond” to North Korea nuclear test and the Defense Ministry raised the military alert level.

The North’s official Korean Central News Agency said the underground test was performed successfully and there was no dangerous radioactive leakage as a result of the underground test.

South Korean intelligence officials said the seismic wave had been detected in North Hamkyung province, according to South Korea’s Yonhap news agency. It said the test was conducted at 10:36 a.m. (6:36 p.m. PDT Sunday) in Hwaderi near Kilju city on the northeast coast, citing defense officials.