Politics
North Korean nuclear test 'imminent' ahead of Biden's Asia trip
One unnamed U.S official noted that the latest intelligence suggested a test could be carried out as early as Thursday or Friday
May 18, 2022 2:36pm
Updated: May 18, 2022 2:37pm
South Korean officials warned on Wednesday that a North Korean ICBN test appeared imminent, just days before President Joe Biden’s first trip to Seoul.
According to South Korean Deputy National Security Adviser Kim Tae-hyo, both his government and Washington have protocols in place to respond to the Hermit Kingdom’s threat, Reuters reported.
"If there is a small or large North Korean provocation during the summit period, we have prepared Plan B," he said.
One unnamed U.S official, however, noted that the latest intelligence suggested a test could be carried out as early as Thursday or Friday.
Biden is expected to travel to Seoul on Friday to meet with South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol before making an official visit to Japan. Although the White House said last week that the president was considering a trip to the Demilitarized Zone, Tae-hyo said such a move was unlikely.
During the visit, both leaders are expected to talk about regional security, the economy and the ongoing war in Ukraine. Yoon, who has vowed to take a harder line against his northern neighbor’s provocations, is also expected to seek greater assurances from Biden that Washington will strengthen its “extended deterrence” against Pyongyang, NPR reported.
Previously, Yoon asked the Biden administration to station more nuclear-capable “strategic assets” such as long-range bombers, aircraft carriers and submarines in the region.
Although North Korea is currently battling their first-reported COVID-19 outbreak, State Department officials said on Tuesday that Pyongyang will likely move ahead with testing – which it abandoned after negotiations with the Trump administration in 2017.
"Even as (North Korea) continues to refuse the donation of ... apparently much-needed COVID vaccines, they continue to invest untold sums in ballistic missile and nuclear weapons programmes that do nothing to alleviate the humanitarian plight of the North Korean people," State Department spokesman Ned Price told reporters.
