Saudi Arabia, Canada hold first political consultations in Ottawa    Saudi Gazette publishes full text of new foreign property ownership law The law grants non-Saudis broader real estate rights under defined conditions while imposing restrictions in Makkah and Madinah    Saudi anti-graft authority investigates 425 employees, detains 142 in July corruption cases    US envoy Witkoff visits Gaza aid distribution site as starvation crisis deepens    Saudi Arabia's real GDP grows 3.9% in Q2 2025 on broad-based economic expansion    New Murabba, Alat sign MoU to develop next-gen vertical transport for The Mukaab    Over 1.2 million Umrah pilgrims arrive in Saudi Arabia since Dhul Hijjah 15    Iran drives out 1.5 million Afghans, with some branded spies for Israel    Kyiv toll rises to 26 after wave of Russian strikes defies Trump ceasefire demand    Young Ukrainians get their way as Zelensky overturns law to defuse crisis    Sotheby's returns Buddha jewels to India after uproar    Riyadh Film Music Festival returns with live orchestral performances of iconic movie scores    Nissan Formula E Team celebrates a landmark season 11 with proud Saudi sponsor Electromin    Qiwa sets 60-day window before reporting worker as absent under new contract rules    Saudi, Russian energy ministers discuss oil market and joint committee plans    Fahad bin Nafel steps down as Al Hilal president after historic six-year run    João Félix unveiled by Al Nassr as €50m move marks bold new chapter in Riyadh    Saudi Arabia approves first Alzheimer's treatment with lecanemab for early-stage patients    Chris Tucker, Pete Davidson and Aziz Ansari among stars set for Riyadh Comedy Festival    Al Nassr beat Benfica to €50m João Félix signing after Ronaldo, Jesus intervene    Sholay: Bollywood epic roars back to big screen after 50 years with new ending    Ministry launches online booking for slaughterhouses on eve of Eid Al-Adha    Shah Rukh Khan makes Met Gala debut in Sabyasachi    Pakistani star's Bollywood return excites fans and riles far right    Exotic Taif Roses Simulation Performed at Taif Rose Festival    Asian shares mixed Tuesday    Weather Forecast for Tuesday    Saudi Tourism Authority Participates in Arabian Travel Market Exhibition in Dubai    Minister of Industry Announces 50 Investment Opportunities Worth over SAR 96 Billion in Machinery, Equipment Sector    HRH Crown Prince Offers Condolences to Crown Prince of Kuwait on Death of Sheikh Fawaz Salman Abdullah Al-Ali Al-Malek Al-Sabah    HRH Crown Prince Congratulates Santiago Peña on Winning Presidential Election in Paraguay    SDAIA Launches 1st Phase of 'Elevate Program' to Train 1,000 Women on Data, AI    41 Saudi Citizens and 171 Others from Brotherly and Friendly Countries Arrive in Saudi Arabia from Sudan    Saudi Arabia Hosts 1st Meeting of Arab Authorities Controlling Medicines    General Directorate of Narcotics Control Foils Attempt to Smuggle over 5 Million Amphetamine Pills    NAVI Javelins Crowned as Champions of Women's Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO) Competitions    Saudi Karate Team Wins Four Medals in World Youth League Championship    Third Edition of FIFA Forward Program Kicks off in Riyadh    Evacuated from Sudan, 187 Nationals from Several Countries Arrive in Jeddah    SPA Documents Thajjud Prayer at Prophet's Mosque in Madinah    SFDA Recommends to Test Blood Sugar at Home Two or Three Hours after Meals    SFDA Offers Various Recommendations for Safe Food Frying    SFDA Provides Five Tips for Using Home Blood Pressure Monitor    SFDA: Instant Soup Contains Large Amounts of Salt    Mawani: New shipping service to connect Jubail Commercial Port to 11 global ports    Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques Delivers Speech to Pilgrims, Citizens, Residents and Muslims around the World    Sheikh Al-Issa in Arafah's Sermon: Allaah Blessed You by Making It Easy for You to Carry out This Obligation. Thus, Ensure Following the Guidance of Your Prophet    Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques addresses citizens and all Muslims on the occasion of the Holy month of Ramadan    







Thank you for reporting!
This image will be automatically disabled when it gets reported by several people.



North Korea Ready to Test Fire ICBM "Anytime, Any Place"
Published in Alriyadh on 27 - 01 - 2017

North Korea is ready to test-fire an intercontinental ballistic missile "at any time, at any place," according to a senior regime official speaking exclusively to NBC News.
If such a launch was successfully carried out, it would be a major step toward Pyongyang's goal of targeting the U.S. mainland with a nuclear-armed weapon.
The comments were made by Choe Kang Il, deputy director general for North American affairs at North Korea's foreign ministry, and highlight international concerns that Kim Jong Un's regime is more technologically advanced than previously thought.
Choe rejected the suggestion that any test launch would be provocative.
"Our measures to bolster our nuclear arsenal are all defensive in nature — to defend our sovereignty and to cope with the persistent nuclear blackmail and threats by the United States against our country," he said.
North Korea has conducted a total of five nuclear tests, including two last year, but the country has never successfully launched an ICBM.
The country regularly threatens nuclear attacks against the United States but, until 2016, analysts had thought the country was a long way from developing missile technology that would make them capable of doing so.
However, North Korea has repeatedly threatened to test-fire an ICBM since its leader, Kim, said in his New Year message that the country's preparations for such a test were at an advanced stage.
Some experts now assess that North Korea's capabilities may have been underestimated.
"Pyongyang is much further along in their missile development than most people realize," said Melissa Hanham, a senior research associate at the U.S.-based Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey, California, told Reuters earlier this month.
Choe claimed that North Korea viewed the regular joint U.S.-South Korean military exercises as a provocation that was spurring the regime to enhance its nuclear weapons capability.
"Imagine if our troops went to Canada and Mexico to carry out a nuclear exercise aimed at invading the U.S., what kind of response would you expect from the American people?" he said. "As long as the U.S. conducts these joint military exercises we will increase our nuclear deterrent forces and our preemptive strike forces."
Asked about the only policy the President Donald Trump's administration had so far announced regarding North Korea — the establishment of a state-of-the-art anti-missile defense system to counter the threat from both that country and Iran, Choe said:
"It's a provocation. If the U.S. wants to develop the system, it should not use our country as an issue or an excuse. The U.S. is intentionally aggravating the tensions on the Korean peninsula in order to realize its ambition of dominating Asia."


Clic here to read the story from its source.