North Korea could conduct its sixth nuclear test as early as Saturday

by Dramelin 10:30 PM 0 comments

"It is highly likely that North Korea would engage in some form of provocation, another missile launch or even a sixth nuclear test, on or around April 15," Shawlin Chaw, senior analyst at Control Risks, told CNBC.
"The DPRK (Democratic People`s Republic of Korea) has stated it is ready for war in response to the U.
S.
show of force this week and will most likely use the politically sensitive date to retaliate and reinforce its legitimacy with its own people," Chaw said, referring to the USS Carl Vinson`s recent move.
North Korea has only demonstrated military action twice on April 15 in recent years.
In 2012, it launched a long-range rocket carrying a satellite and last year, it tested an intermediate-range missile that reportedly failed.
To mark the national day, around 200 foreign journalists were in Pyongyang, Reuters reported on Thursday.
Kim Jong-un needs to appear strong to his own people on April 15, especially in the context of perceived foreign bullies bringing their warships into the region, explained Steven Ward, assistant professor at Chosun University.
"But a missile test isn`t Kim`s only option.
A less provocative choice might be an underground nuclear test," he said.
On Wednesday, commercial satellite imagery of the nation`s Punggye-ri Nuclear Test Site revealed "continued activity around the North Portal, new activity in the Main Administrative Area, and a few personnel around the site`s Command Center," U.
S.
think-tank 38 North said on its website.
That same day, Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping spoke to each other via telephone about the "menace of North Korea," according to a tweet from the president, who also said Washington was prepared to deal with the pariah state without China, if necessary.