National Review
News
World
North Korea Follows Through on Kim’s Pledge to Destroy Nuclear-Test Site
By Jack Crowe
May 24, 2018 8:47 AM
Kim Jong Un looks at a rocket warhead tip after a simulated test of atmospheric re-entry of a ballistic missile, at an unidentified location in this undated photo released March 15, 2016. (KCNA via Reuters)
North Korea demolished its nuclear-testing site Thursday, following through on an April pledge by Kim Jong-un that came amid renewed relations between the South and North.
Roughly two-dozen journalists from five nations witnessed the explosive demolition at the Punggye-ri nuclear-test site, though no experts, investigators, or South Korean media were permitted to attend.
“The nuclear test and the intercontinental-ballistic-missile test will be discontinued,” Kim said on April 20, according to state media. “North Korea’s nuclear-test center will be discarded in order to ensure the transparency of the suspension of the nuclear test.”
The pledge came after a historic summit with South Korean president Moon Jae-in that produced a joint promise to denuclearize the Korean Peninsula, cease cross-border propaganda operations, and officially end the 60-year-old Korean War.
Stay Updated with NR Daily
NR's afternoon roundup of the day's best commentary & must-read analysis.
The North maintains that it no longer needs the test site because it has completed its nuclear development. But the gesture has been widely interpreted as a show of good faith made amid a series of conciliatory gestures, including the release of three American hostages held in North Korea earlier this month.
The lack of experts present at the demolition obscured its overall impact on North Korean capabilities, but the Associated Press, which had reporters on the ground, suggested that the demolition could likely be reversed if the Kim regime wanted to begin testing missiles at the site again.
The Punggye-ri site has seen six nuclear tests since 2006, the most recent of which took place in September and featured a two-stage thermonuclear bomb vastly more powerful than anything previously tested by North Korea.
Comments
The Thursday demolition comes ahead of President Trump’s June 12 summit with Kim in Singapore, which was placed in jeopardy last week after North Korean officials preemptively declared they would not surrender their nuclear capability in exchange for economic concessions.
The White House has maintained that preparations for the meeting continue, while Trump said Tuesday that the meeting may take place at a later date or possibly not at all.
Jack Crowe — Jack Crowe is a news writer at National Review Online.
More in World
U.S. Has Leverage in Dealings with Iran and North Korea
A New Gulag in China
Americans Are Royally Confused about Monarchy
Ireland’s Momentous Referendum on the Human Rights of the Unborn
SPONSORED CONTENT
What a 1990 Playboy Interview Tells Us about Trump’s Economics What a 1990 Playboy Interview Tells Us about Trump’s Economics
China’s Salami-Slicing Policy toward Taiwan China’s Salami-Slicing Policy toward Taiwan
How To Play the U.S Mega Powerball Lottery Ticket From Your Mobile? How To Play the U.S Mega Powerball Lottery Ticket From Your… 24lottos
With North Korea, This Time Is Different With North Korea, This Time Is Different
Solo: Soulless Solo: Soulless
Jordan Peterson Plays in the Left’s Cultural Sandbox Jordan Peterson Plays in the Left’s Cultural Sandbox
North Korea Suspends Talks with South Korea over Military Drill North Korea Suspends Talks with South Korea over Military Drill
The Vocation of Law The Vocation of Law
Recommended by
Most Popular
Religion
Jordan Peterson Plays in the Left’s Cultural Sandbox
By David French
Rarely in my life have I read a more hostile or vicious takedown of a public figure than last week’s New York Times profile of Canadian author and psychologist Jordan Peterson. Rarely have I witnessed a more bizarre and bad-faith interview of a public figure than journalist Cathy Newman’s January ... Read More
U.S.
Americans Are Royally Confused about Monarchy
By J. J. McCullough
Conventional wisdom regarding America’s relationship with royalty goes something like this: Americans have no time for monarchy as a political concept but can’t get enough of the British royal family. The American media’s round-the-clock coverage of the recent royal wedding certainly seems ample evidence of ... Read More
Elections
The Trump Rationale
By Victor Davis Hanson
Why exactly did nearly half the country vote for Donald Trump? Why also did the arguments of Never Trump Republicans and conservatives have marginal effect on voters? Despite vehement denunciations of the Trump candidacy from many pundits on the right and in the media, Trump nonetheless got about the same ... Read More
White House
At Trump’s Urging, Justice Department Expands Investigation of Investigators
By Andrew C. McCarthy
On Sunday, President Trump tweeted a “demand” that the Justice Department investigate political spying in the 2016 campaign. This replays the political-spying controversy that surfaced in late February. Right now, the issue involves the Obama administration’s use of at least one confidential informant -- a ... Read More
Politics & Policy
In Politicized Justice, Desperate Times Call for Disparate Measures
By Andrew C. McCarthy
We wuz robbed. That’s the theme Democrats and their media allies are working hard to cement into conventional wisdom. And robbed in a very specific way: The 2016 presidential election, we’re to believe, was stolen from Hillary Clinton by disparate treatment. As Democrats tell it, the FBI scandalized their ... Read More
White House
Yes, a Reasonable Prosecutor Would Have Ordered an Investigation of the Trump Campaign
By David French
We’re rapidly reaching a point in the Russia investigation where partisan opinion revolves almost entirely around unproven assertions. On the anti-Trump left (and parts of the Never Trump right) there exists a burning conviction that Robert Mueller “has the goods” — that there is strong evidence of ... Read More
Login
Donate
Subscribe
Sections
The Corner
Bench Memos
The Morning Jolt
The G-File
All Articles
All Authors
Podcasts
Photos
Videos
Topics
Politics & Policy
Culture
White House
Film & TV
PC Culture
U.S.
World
Immigration
Economy & Business
Elections
Magazine
Latest Issue
Archive
Subscribe
Customer Care
NRPLUS
Magazine FAQ
About
Frequently Asked Questions
The Masthead
Contact Us
Privacy Policy
Terms of Service
NR Institute
More
Advertise
Donate
Search
E-mails & Alerts
Newsletters
Morning Jolt (M-F)
NR Daily (M-Sa)
The G-File (F)
Breaking News (M-Su)
© 2018 National Review
Loading...
:)
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment