North And South Korea Declare End To War, Proclaim “New Era Of Peace”

This report was originally published by Tyler Durden at Zero Hedge

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and South Korean President Moon Jae-in agreed Friday to finally end a seven-decade war this year, and signed a declaration to pursue the “complete denuclearization” of the Korean Peninsula, although they did not announce any concrete steps to dismantle the North’s nuclear programs.

The two leaders embraced after signing the deal during a historic meeting on their shared border, the first time a North Korean leader has set foot on the southern side. They announced plans to formally declare a resolution to the war and replace 1953 armistice that ended open hostilities into a peace treaty by year’s end.

“We solemnly declare to our 80m Koreans and the world that there will no more war on the Korean peninsula and a new era of peace has begun,” North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and South Korean president Moon Jae-in said in a joint statement. “It is our urgent historic assignment to put an end to this current abnormal state of ceasefire and establish a peace regime.”

“We have agreed to share a firm determination to open a new era in which all Korean people enjoy prosperity and happiness on a peaceful land without wars,” Kim said, in his first remarks in front of the global press since taking power in 2011.

The two sides “confirmed the common goal of realizing, through complete denuclearization, a nuclear-free Korean Peninsula.”

The two agreed to work towards advancing the reunification of the divided nations and further improving inter-Korean relations. In order to reduce tension, the two sides agreed to hold military talks in May and set up a joint liaison office in Kaesong, the border town in the North.

“South and North Korea agreed to actively seek the support and cooperation of the international community for the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula,” according to the statement. It didn’t elaborate on what that would entail.

“The commitment to ‘complete denuclearization’ is ambiguous, and subject to different interpretations,” said Youngshik Bong, a researcher at Yonsei University’s Institute for North Korean Studies in Seoul. “It can be interpreted as North Korea getting rid of all warheads, or North Korean demands on the U.S. military in South Korea.”

They have also agreed to end any hostile activities that can lead to military clashes, including cross-border propaganda broadcasts and leaflet distribution. They will also enable Red Cross talks to discuss reunions of families separated by the Korean war.

Kim on Friday walked across the military demarcation line dividing the two nations with an aim to end decades of conflict on the peninsula, becoming the first North Korean leader to set foot on South Korean soil.

As Bloomberg notes, the agreement follows a rapid thaw of tensions on the peninsula after a flurry of North Korean missile tests and a hydrogen bomb detonation last year. Kim plans to meet U.S. President Donald Trump soon, which would be the first summit between a North Korean leader and a sitting American president.

The question now is whether the commitment will lead to lasting change. Previous agreements have collapsed over inspections, weapons tests and disputes over economic aid.

Much of the agreement mirrors previous deals between North Korea and Moon’s liberal predecessors. It appeared aimed at restoring cooperation that had deteriorated over the past decade.

Kim’s official Korean Central News Agency issued a tersely worded commentary after the announcement urging the U.S. to respond “with sincerity.” “What is needed for the U.S. is to learn how to observe good manners and how to respect the party concerned, not resorting to high-handed practices and arrogance,” the piece said.

Reaction in markets was limited given the South Korean stock market had closed for the week when the deal was announcement landed.

The meeting paves the way for Mr Kim to meet US President Donald Trump later this year.

“I felt a flood of emotion as I walked the 200 meters here,” Kim told Moon as talks began.

“I came here with a mindset that we will fire a flare at the starting point of a new history for peace and prosperity. Let’s get everything off our minds out here and get good results.”

This is what Kim Jong-un told Moon Jae-in, as relayed by South Korea’s presidential spokesman Yoon Young-chan.

“Kim Jong-un said that he came here to put an end to the history of conflict, discuss and remove obstacles between us with the South Korean president. He said let’s meet more often and we should be determined not to go back to square one. Kim also said let’s live up to all the expectations and create a better world.”

“The two leaders had a sincere and frank dialogue over the denuclearisation and the establishment of permanent peace of the Korean peninsula and development of inter-Korea ties.”

#BREAKING: North Korean leader Kim Jong-un makes history with a brief walk into South Korea for an ice-breaking #KoreaSummit pic.twitter.com/hsa4IM7O2v

— Jeffs (@jeffs_araujo35) April 27, 2018

After they planted the tree, Mr Kim told Mr Moon:

“Just like a pine tree, I hope that we can always be green, even in winter time.”

“Yes, it will be like that,” Mr Moon replied.

“Eyes and ears from all over the world are focused on Panmunjom,” Moon said. “I feel the weight on our shoulders is heavy.”

As The BBC notes, the inter-Korean summit has basically taken everyone by surprise and proven many an expert prediction very wrong (and gravely disappointed many anti-Trump-ites).

From this…

To this…

In 3 months.

No Wall, No War, No hate
Today, We are all KOREANS #interkoreansummit #남북정상회담 #KoreaSummit pic.twitter.com/iziTIIEGmW

— JaeKwon Son 손재권 (@gjack) April 27, 2018

Here’s one of the pundits contemplating the “known and unknown unknowns” this is teaching us…

Along the way, I"ve gotten many things wrong. Known and unknown unknowns abound. The capacity to be surprised & questions one"s assumptions is a struggle, and the most important one. But blanket skepticism does not guarantee you are getting things right; & fatalism is a dead-end.

— John Delury (@JohnDelury) April 27, 2018

Previous attempts to negotiate aid-for-disarmament deals have failed.

But in January, the North embarked on direct talks with Seoul, attended the Winter Olympics in South Korea and in April the two leaders met for a historic inter-Korean summit.

Pyongyang also offered direct talks with the US – an offer Mr Trump accepted – and ordered a halt to nuclear and missile tests.

Talks between the two would be unprecedented, but the details, agenda and timing of the summit are yet to be confirmed.

Of course, as Bloomberg reports, any progress on dismantling the Kim’s weapons program would likely be slow and fraught, and involve visits by international inspectors. Prior efforts involving Kim’s late father when he was leader collapsed in acrimony, with North Korea blaming the U.S. for failure to adhere to the agreements.

“It’s off to a good start, but there must be a concrete commitment by Kim on denuclearization,” said Youngshik Bong, a researcher at Yonsei University’s Institute for North Korean Studies in Seoul. “Otherwise it will end up as a fancy show.”

Kim Jong-un agrees to end feud with South Korea and denuclearize Korean Peninsula

The two Korean leaders vow to ‘cease all hostile acts’ in a ‘new era of peace’ after being at war for decades

KOREAN PENINSULA (INTELLIHUB) — North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and South Korean President Moon Jae-in crossed over into each others countries on Thursday for the first time with big smiles on their faces as the two leaders plan to end to decades-long war in a big step forward for humanity and the people of North and South Korea.

The two leaders shook hands before discussing the bright future on both sides of the demarcation line

Embed from Getty Images

“We have a chance to heal the wounds,” he North Korean leader told Moon. “I’ll make sure that you can sleep soundly.”

Jong-un said that he’s looking forward to “making the most of this opportunity so that we have the chance to heal the wounds between the North and the South. Let’s meet more often from now on.”

The North Korean leader added: “Let’s meet people’s expectations to make a better world. I promise we will do well in the future.”

“I came here to put an end to the history of confrontation as well as to work shoulder to shoulder with you to tackle the obstacles between us. I came to with the confidence that a brighter future awaits us,” he explained.

A smiling Jong-un briefly took Moon, who also appeared happy, by the hand and crossed back in to North Korea.

Embed from Getty Images

President Trump tweeted: “After a furious year of missile launches and Nuclear testing, a historic meeting between North and South Korea is now taking place. Good things are happening, but only time will tell!”

After a furious year of missile launches and Nuclear testing, a historic meeting between North and South Korea is now taking place. Good things are happening, but only time will tell!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 27, 2018

The historic meeting marks a turning point for the world.

Featured Image: Screenshot via Faz/YouTube

©2018. INTELLIHUB.COM. All Rights Reserved.

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The CIA Director’s Secret Meeting With Kim Jong-Un: What You Need to Know

(ANTIMEDIA) — Mike Pompeo, current CIA director and U.S. President Donald Trump’s nominee for secretary of state, reportedly met with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un over the Easter weekend, further indicating that the two countries are becoming increasingly serious about meeting later this year. The Washington Post broke the story about what was supposedly a top-secret meeting late Tuesday night. The Post noted […]

The Mainstream Media Won’t Talk About North Korea Agreeing To Denuclearize

The mainstream media has simply ignored the fact that North Korea has agreed to denuclearize the Korean peninsula. First South Korean, then Chinese officials have in recent weeks reported North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has told them he is “committed to denuclearization” on the Korean peninsula

But where has the mainstream media been? They’ve been entirely focused on an agenda to strip basic human rights away from the public and an alleged affair between the president and a porn star twelve years ago.   So why don’t they want to report on the actual big news? Agenda, propaganda, brainwashing, narratives for the elites.

“It is our consistent stand to be committed to denuclearization on the peninsula, in accordance with the will of late President Kim Il Sung and late General Secretary Kim Jong Il,” Kim Jong Un said, according to  Chinese state media outlet Xinhua. Kim is currently in China for a meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping. “The issue of denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula can be resolved if South Korea and the United States respond to our efforts with goodwill,” Kim told Chinese officials during a visit this week, according to Xinhua.

According to Reuters, Kim’s declared commitment to denuclearization, however, is neither new nor in line with the “bash Trump” and “turn all Americans into poverty-stricken slaves” narrative that is constantly being forced down our throats. However, President Trump has pressed North Korea to act since taking office in January 2017. And what’s more, he’s pushed China to do more about its belligerent neighbor, and taken some actions seen as overkill, like enacting tariffs on Chinese goods. But Trump’s efforts appear to have paid off, at least as of right now.

Received message last night from XI JINPING of China that his meeting with KIM JONG UN went very well and that KIM looks forward to his meeting with me. In the meantime, and unfortunately, maximum sanctions and pressure must be maintained at all cost!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 28, 2018

This is a huge story, and one the American public should know about.  There’s probably little to no reason to fear North Korea any longer, yet perhaps that’s why this has all been ignored.  Fear, after all, is how the mainstream media brainwashes everyone they can in order to push an agenda.

Obviously, Trump’s success (of any kind) won’t help the mainstream media and their narrative. North Korea also probably shouldn’t be trusted after years of haughty derision and terroristic rhetoric about their nuclear program. But the point is that progress is being made and denuclearization could actually occur on Trump’s watch and the media can’t be bothered to report on it.

Dave H. on President Trump’s upcoming meeting with North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un

(INTELLIHUB) — Host of the Endgame Show WW3 Dave H. appeared on The Shepard Ambellas Show Friday, where the two discussed President Donald Trump’s upcoming meeting with North Korea which is set to happen sometime before May.

“They said that Trump has accepted an offer to meet Kim Jung-un most likely in the DMZ over in these friendship villages they have set up over there where half is on North Korea’s side and the other half of the building is on South Korea’s side,” Dave said. “This is what I have got to say about this Shep, is, Trump has absolutely said since he’s been president that Little Kim has to give up his nuclear weapons and denuclearize, not freeze everything where he’s at but completely get rid of them, tear them apart, get rid of them, you cant’ have it or we are going to go over there and take these nukes from him — that is what Trump has said from day one.”

‘Trumps tough talk may have put Kim in a position to where he actually thinks Trump may fire upon North Korea,’ he said.

“When Trump goes into these meetings with North Korea there is only two choices that Trump has to say to Kim,” Dave explained. “Drop your nukes or we attack you, that’s it.”

“I think that this talk is stupid because like I said. All that Trump has been touting since he has been president and Little Kim has done all these nuclear tests — now he ready to go. I mean, the only thing Kim needs to get down is an MIRV vehicle, something that can stay together coming out of the atmosphere with an ICBM, it’s a reentry vehicle.”

Freeze for freeze won’t work, Dave explained.

You can listen to the full broadcast here.

The Shepard Ambellas Show airs weekdays (Mon-Fri) @ 9 pm Eastern/8C on American Freedom Radio.

©2018. INTELLIHUB.COM. All Rights Reserved.

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Edward Snowden May Have Info That Would TAKE DOWN The Deep State

A new report by the YouTube channel X22 Report claims that the deep state may want NSA leaker, Edward Snowden.  Apparently, Snowden may have information that could take them all down.

Dave from the X22 Report begins by stating the obvious: big tech giants such as YouTube have been taking down news channels that don’t align with the deep state’s brand of tyranny. But he says to watch for people to dump stocks as the Internet Bill of Rights (IBOR) becomes more widely accepted (the regulation of tech giants to stop censorship). Because once freedom is speech is allowed online again, all of the information can come out, and Snowden may have more that will cripple the deep state.

Christopher Steele, who was responsible for the infamous Trump dossier, was connected with the Russian double-agent and ex-spy who was poisoned along with his daughter, with a nerve agent. (The British government is blaming Moscow for the attempted assassination. Or “wet works” as Dave put it.)

Dave also says the media hasn’t the slightest idea of what to do with the news that Donald Trump has reached out to North Korea in an attempt to discuss denuclearization.  But Trump continues to circumvent the deep state and the mainstream media.

“The corporate media doesn’t know what to do with all this. They’re out there saying ‘Trump is a madman, he’s gonna bring us to war. Trump is a madman, these peace talks are gonna bring us to war.’  They really don’t want to admit that we might have peace with North Korea because this is not part of their agenda. Their agenda is to go to war. That’s what they wanted all along. The thing that the corporate media doesn’t know, is that Trump has already met with Kim Jong-Un. The meeting already took place. The deal is already set. Everything is already done. How do we know this? Trump was in China at the Forbidden City. Met with Kim Jong-Un there; with China, Russia, and the rest. Already agreed that North Korea will disarm and discussed reunification.”

But one of the biggest revelations is about NSA leaker Edward Snowden.  “CIA intelligence operatives want Snowden badly,” says Dave.

“They know where Snowden is…if they really wanted to arrest him, they would just go in and take him…Why are the clowns, CIA intelligence agencies after Snowden? Well, most likely, I think he has evidence on the deep state; certain individuals within the deep state.  And maybe even information on 9/11. They’re saying there’s and 85% probability the Snowden has the Hillary Rodham Clinton video, the raw video. And people are speculating that this video is Hillary having sex with a child.”

There is a lot of speculation in this particular report, but it’s important to look at things from an alternative view.  We could not verify that Trump has already made a deal with Kim Jong-Un, nor could we (obviously) verify what information Edward Snowden has that he hasn’t made public yet.

But what we can agree with Dave on is: “We’ve been lied to all this time, and they’re still lying to us.”

Donald Trump On North Korea: ‘We Ran Out Of Road…The Road Really Ended’

President Donald Trump and Vice President Mike Pence have both recently made comments regarding North Korea’s refusal to abandon their nuclear weapons program. On Friday, Trump met with North Korean defectors and to told them the ‘road has really ended.”

Pence is scheduled to head to the 2018 Winter Olympic Games and to reassure Seoul and Tokyo that there is no daylight between the allies in confronting the North over its nuclear weapons and ballistic missile programs. “I’ll cheer on our athletes, but I’ll also be there to deliver a simple message: That the era of strategic patience is over,” Pence said Friday at an event in Pittsburgh. “We’ll make it clear that all options are on the table. And you can be confident we will continue to bring all economic and diplomatic pressure to bear until North Korea permanently abandons its nuclear and ballistic missile programs once and for all.”

According to the Washington Examiner, the president himself has also spoken about the options available to the United States. Trump met with North Korean defectors and said despite the first talks between North and South Korea in two years, time is running out. “You know, we ran out of road. You know the expression? The road really ended,” Trump said, as he once again blamed previous administrations for failing to stop North Korea’s nuclear program before it could threaten the U.S. “They could’ve done it 12 years ago. They could’ve done it 20 years ago. They could’ve done it four years ago, and two years ago. We have no road left.”

These statements come on the heels of North Korea’s response to Trump’s State of the Union address last week. After Trump said no other regime more harshly oppresses its own people than North Korea, the president took a shot a Kim Jong-Un, likely angering the dictatorship. “We need only look at the depraved character of the North Korean regime to understand the nature of the nuclear threat it could pose to America and to our allies,” the US President added.

A North Korean foreign ministry spokesperson fired back at the President, claiming the speech was “sinister” while talking up Pyongyang’s nuclear arsenal. “Trump also insisted upon the ‘maximum pressure’ against our country,” the spokesman said. “However, it is no less than the screams of Trump terrified at the power the DPRK has achieved.  Trump even reveals his sinister intention to do something against us by relying on strength while talking about ‘American resolve’. Our self-reliant defense capability with the nuclear force as its backbone will, however, completely deter Trump and his lackeys from showing off on the Korean peninsula. If Trump does not get rid of his anachronistic and dogmatic way of thinking, it will only bring about the consequence of further endangering security and future of the United States,” the spokesman threatened.

US Intelligence Reveals North Korea’s ‘Kryptonite’: Can The US Win A War Without Firing A Shot?

David Blair, a former director of US Intelligence, revealed Tuesday what he believes is North Korea’s “Kryptonite.” Blair says this one small thing could topple Kim Jong-Un’s regime without even firing a shot.

While US officials contemplate military action to prevent the reclusive regime from obtaining nuclear weapons, Blair, who is a former US Navy admiral, has suggested another method of attack. He says the US should deploy tactics that wield information, not weapons.

North Korea is largely cut off from the outside world and they have no idea how bad and oppressive things are in their country, Blair said, because they’re subject to an “unrelenting barrage of government propaganda.”  According to Business Insider, North Korean citizens caught with South Korean media can be sentenced to death or sent to horrific prison camps, as control of the media and intolerance for different narratives are pillars of North Korea’s government.

The US could use the recent cellphone trend spreading through North Korea to their advantage, says Blair.  Basically, while having North Korean state-run propaganda blaring through their devices, the United States could also input their own propaganda through text messages on civilians phones.  About one in five North Koreans own a cellphone, many of which can connect to Chinese cell towers across the Yalu River along the countries’ border, he said.

“Texts to these cell phones can provide subversive truth,” Blair said. “Cell towers can be extended; CDs and thumb drives can be smuggled in; radio and TV stations can be beamed there. The objective is to separate the Kim family from its primary support — the secret police, the army, and the propaganda ministry,” Blair said.

Yun Sun, a North Korea expert at the Stimson Center, told Business Insider last year that a similar idea floated by a former US Navy SEAL warranted looking into.  “Kim Jong Un understands that as soon as society is open and North Korean people realize what they’re missing, Kim’s regime is unsustainable, and it’s going to be overthrown,” Sun said. Sun said that in the past when South Korea flew balloons that dropped pamphlets and DVDs over North Korea, Kim’s government responded with the military, unaccepting of outside information.

Blair pointed to other totalitarian states where popular uprisings have become informed and sought to take down a media-controlling dictator, concluding his testimony by saying that “once that process starts, it is hard to stop.”

It’s also important to remember too, that North Koreans are starving and unarmed.  Any attempt to overthrow a dictatorial regime by the people of North Korea could be squashed immediately.

 

Eerie Satellite Images Show North Korea Gearing Up For Another Nuclear Test

As the world stands at the precipice of a third world war, eerie satellite images show that North Korea is likely getting ready for another nuclear test. The new images are reigniting fears that this could be the final straw that would officially lead to world war 3.

Dramatic satellite images taken earlier this month show disturbing activity on a barge that supports the development of a deadly nuclear submarine. The photos show activity on a second submersible ballistic missile test stand barge at the Nampo Navy Shipyard, a seaport in South Pyongan Province. This particular barge supported the development of the deadly Pukguksong-1 SLBM and the SINPO-Class experimental ballistic missile submarine.

The photo below was taken by satellite on January 6, 2018.

The fitting-out dock is used when vessels need systems such as pumps or electrics to be installed and minor work to be completed before being placed into devastating service. Since the last set of images were taken in December, the barge now has a small floating crane moored alongside it. Though the purpose of the work is unclear, it is probably related to final stages of repair before declaring the barge operational, reported Express.co.uk.

It comes as Kim Jong-un’s repeated tests of his atomic arsenal have caused tensions to heat up in Asia, bringing condemnation from numerous powers and fanned World War 3 fears. This news also surfaces as a nuclear scientist, who has frequently visited North Korea, warned that the nation could have an atomic bomb capable of fitting onto a missile. The director of Los Alamos National Laboratory Sig Hecker said that the rogue regime could also have anywhere between 30 and 60 small mobile nuclear warheads. Speaking to CBS News’ 60 Minutes, Hecker said: “What’s even more important than the 30 or 60, is how small can they make them.”

When prompted as to what the nuclear warheads look like, Hecker said that they looked like a “fission bomb.” “This to me is one that I would call a spherical fission bomb, in other words, the atomic bomb,” Hecker said.  “It looks like a simple bomb. However what I found most important about this is the size of it, it looks to be about 60 centimeters.

Photos from almost two years ago show North Korea’s tyrannical dictator posing with what he claimed was a nuclear warhead small enough to be mounted on a missile. When asked whether it could be mounted to a missile, Hecker said: “They definitely want us to think so.”

Tensions Rise As North Korea Mocks Trump’s Tweet: ‘Spasm Of A Lunatic’

North Korea and the United States seem to be reigniting the heated rhetoric that caused tensions between the two nations to tighten immensely. After president Donald Trump tweeted about the size of his nuclear button, North Korean dictator, Kim Jong-un, had a reply of his own.

North Korean state media called President Trump’s boast of having a bigger nuclear button than its leader Kim Jong Un the “spasm of a lunatic” Tuesday.  North Korean propaganda has also dubbed Trump as a “loser” and a “psychopath” after the US president tweeted that his nuclear button is larger than Kim Jong-un’s and it actually functions.

North Korean Leader Kim Jong Un just stated that the “Nuclear Button is on his desk at all times.” Will someone from his depleted and food starved regime please inform him that I too have a Nuclear Button, but it is a much bigger & more powerful one than his, and my Button works!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 3, 2018

North Korea’s official news agency (aka, state propaganda) described Trump’s tweet as the “the spasm of a lunatic,” according to AP. “Trump’s bluff is regarded by the DPRK (Democratic People’s Republic of Korea) as just a spasm of a lunatic frightened by the might of Juche Korea and a bark of a rabid dog,” said the report which summarized a commentary in the ruling party newspaper Rodong Sinmun. Juche is the official North Korean state ideology, often translated as “self-reliance.”

“The spasm of Trump in the new year reflects the desperate mental state of a loser who failed to check the vigorous advance of the army and people of the [Democratic People’s Republic of Korea] … He is making [a] bluff only to be diagnosed as a psychopath,” it added.

Trump’s tweet came a day after Kim said in a speech: “The United States should know that the button for nuclear weapons is on my table,” according to the Associated Press. Kim claimed the weapons were capable of reaching the entire U.S. mainland.  It followed an escalating war of words between Trump and Kim, amid global concerns that nuclear war could break out.  According to SHTFPlan, the US military is already preparing for a war with North Korea, albeit silently.

According to the Washington Post, in their Tuesday responses to the tweet, North Korean media also appeared to address speculations over President Trump’s mental health which were raised in the controversial “Fire and Fury” book. Trump has rejected the claims made in the book, and has boasted about being “like, really smart” and a “very stable genius” in response.

The ‘Bloody Nose’ Strategy: The US Weighs Military Action Against North Korea

Amid reports that some of the iciness between North Korea and the United States could be thawing comes another that states the United States is weighing military action against North Korea.  The strategy, known as the “bloody nose” would attempt to strike the rogue regime without starting an all-out war.

According to The Wall Street Journal, as just one sign of how fraught the situation remains, simply consider this: U.S. officials are quietly debating whether it’s possible to mount a limited military strike against North Korean sites without igniting an all-out war on the Korean Peninsula. This action is called the “bloody nose” strategy.  Meaning the US doesn’t want to destroy North Korea, but they do want to bust the country up a little.

For example, instead of reacting to all of North Korea’s missile tests with words only, the US would react to some nuclear or missile test with a targeted strike against a North Korean facility to “bloody Pyongyang’s nose” and illustrate the high price the regime could pay for its behavior. The hope would be to make that point without inciting a full-bore reprisal by North Korea.

Of course, that’s a very risky maneuver especially considering the rhetoric on both sides.  Should the US decide to attempt a bloody nose attack, it would be done with a desire to simply humiliate, but only slightly damage the North Korean regime.

Even with concerns over a war hanging in the air, North Korea said it will send a delegation to the Winter Olympics this year in Pyeongchang, South Korea. North Korea said during talks with the South it would send a group of athletes, high-ranking officials, and a cheer squad to the Winter Games.

Trump last weekend said he would like to see North Korea get involved in the upcoming Winter Olympics.

WW3 Fears Spiked After Ground Shaking Explosion Occurred Over Russia

A mysterious flash over Russia has spiked fears that the third world war has begun.  Many were worried that the ground shaking explosion over Russia was that of the United States striking North Korea with a weapon of mass destruction.

According to the Daily Mail, the phenomenon was seen and felt over thousands of miles in Russia but was especially evident in three regions: Bashkortostan, Udmurtia, and Tatarstan.  The flash was so bright, that witnesses said it turned the night into day.

Although some think the flash was nothing more than a meteor, others were concerned. “Probably it was the testing of some military weapon if even the ground was shaking,” said Firaya Zaripova commenting early Monday morning. “I saw the flash in Menzelinsk. There was also the sound of an explosion and then a vibration, I felt it,” said Ilnaz Shaykhraziev.

Another witness described the flash as an object breaking apart in the sky. “A meteor burned out, not reaching the lower layers of the atmosphere. Before this it exploded and split into many small pieces. That is why there was such a sound, which came to us in a few seconds. It’s a funny coincidence that such a rare phenomenon for our region has happened right over Christmas,” said Denis Rozenfeld.

 Russian officials and scientists were rather quick to deny there had been a Russian missile test or any reported space rock crashing to earth.  The flash also prompted fears that the United States attacked North Korea. And there has been speculation this week that North Korea was poised to test a ballistic missile or a nuke to mark tyrannical leader Kim Jong-un’s birthday.

“We saw this while driving – there was a vibration and the sound of explosion in the sky, awesome,” said Artyom Russkikh, as reported by The Siberian Times which collected witness statements of the flash on the night following Russian Orthodox Christmas Day this week. “What was it? A meteor, a rocket from space, UFO, North Korea?”

Reports of similar flashes have occurred three times in 12 years in Russia, yet experts were split on the cause of the flash.

Yuri Nefefyev, director of the Engelhardt Astronomical Observatory, claimed atmospheric electricity was behind the eerie night-to-day explosion of light. “There are a huge number of effects linked to atmospheric electricity, many of which are not properly studied because of how rarely they occur,” he said.

Astronomers from Kazan Federal University in Tatarstan insisted there was a space link. “This was a bolide, when all substance burns in atmosphere and doesn’t reach Earth,” said Dr Sergey Golovkin, of the University’s Physics Institute. “It is accompanied by a loud bang. It could have been a fragment of a spacecraft that burnt, but normally it takes them more time to enter the atmosphere, thus they can be observed for longer. This was a bolide that burnt in the dense layers of the atmosphere which is why it was seen over such a big territory. We didn’t register the flash because there was strong blizzard on this night.” -The Daily Mail

Although no one is certain what this strange phenomenon was, the consensus and likely possibility is some sort of space debris. It was not the United States striking North Korea.

WW3 Approaches, Expert Warns: ‘North Korea Will Test ICBM During Olympics’

Defcon analysts are claiming North Korea and their round pint-sized tyrant, Kim Jong-Un, will test another intercontinental ballistic missile, and much “sooner than expected.” This test is likely to occur during the Winter Olympics in South Korea.

The shocking warning from Defcon comes amid news that the South and the North have rekindled talks about the Olympics. Defcon has monitored and analyzed nuclear threats against the United States since 1984 and classes the immediacy of the threat numerically and by color. The US is currently at Defcon 5, code Green, meaning there are no imminent nuclear threats against the country.

But according to Defcon analyst, Harry Kazianis, the North will most likely conduct their next ICBM test during the Winter Olympics, which is set to take place in Pyeongchang, South Korea in February of this year. “They are going to test an ICBM, or nuclear weapon, or try to hack these Olympics. They are not going to do nothing. They are going to do something,” Kazianis said.

North Korea has been ignoring calls to put an end to its threatening rhetoric, fueling fears of World War 3 among the international community. Kazianis also warned that leader Kim Jong-un could exploit the Winter Olympics to showcase his military arsenal in front of the world despite the offering of the proverbial olive branch to neighboring South Korea. “Of course, the South Koreans are going to try and make the best of it but I guarantee the North Koreans are going to use this for propaganda advantage,” Kazianis reiterated.

Other experts say that the US is going to jump a chance to fight another war too. Analysts warned of the burgeoning conflict between North Korea and the US as they announced the latest Defcon condition code. Despite the low threat level, analysts have warned of increasingly volatile international politics which could plunge the globe into war.

Balking at United Nations sanctions and increasing international pressure, North Korea has refused to give up its nuclear weapons, saying they are non-negotiable. The dictatorship is likely to continue testing missiles and other nuclear, chemical, and biological weapons as well, provoking a further international outcry, according to Defcon.

“This test took a number of experts by surprise, and many warn that North Korea is rapidly advancing its ICBM capabilities,” Defcon said of North Korea’s latest nuclear test, which flew for longer than any previously tested missile.

WW3 ALERT: Chinese Troops Told To ‘Ready For War’ And Sent To North Korean Border

Chinese tanks, soldiers, and military trucks have been gathering on the border in preparation for a war. The Chinese military was quickly rushed to the border they share with North Korea after being told to get “ready for war.”

According to the Daily Star, the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) forces have been building up military assets in the cover of the night around the Tumen River in Yanji city, Jilin province, which borders North Korea. Chinese commanders are reported to have recently conducted the so-called “war ceremony” – urging their troops to be ready to fight as columns of PLA trucks have been pictured on the move near Yanji City which is close to the triple border between China, Russia, and North Korea.

China is North Korea’s only traditional ally and has been coming under pressure to tackle Kim Jong-un from the US.  Sources cited in Chinese media have claimed that the PLA is “preparing for war on the Korean Peninsula.” China would be expected to use its military forces to help quell a flood of refugees should the United States initiate an attack North Korea and chubby dictator, Kim Jong-Un. Beijing is also expected to quickly move into the rogue state to seize assets, and potentially have China join the war on the side of North Korea once the US begins a so-far theoretical attack.

According to Zerohedge, if the media report is accurate, it would suggest that China – fearing the worst – is preparing for a full-blown war on the Korean Penisula. Previously, internal documents leaked from China’s main state-owned telecommunications company shows three villages and cities in the northeastern border province of Jilin, have been designated for refugee camps-if war breaks out. China is afraid a swarm of refugees from North Korea could cross the Tumen River into China.

Zhang Liangui, a professor of international strategic research at the Communist Party’s Central Party School said, “it is highly possible that there is a conflict between North Korea and the United States now. What China does here is to be prepared for any kind of situation happening on the Korean Peninsula.”

While China prepares for a ground war on the Korean Peninsula by moving military assets to border cities along the Tumen River, there is another threat breaking Tuesday morning: North Korea is preparing to test the largest ICBM to date. Coupled with  im Jong-un’s “Happy New Year” threat to the world when he warned the “nuclear button” is on his desk, this could be the beginning stages of a third world war.

US president Donald Trump has warned there would be “no friendly solution” until China stops backing North Korea.

Balloons & Flash Drives: How A Private Organization Is Trying To Incite Rebellion In North Korea

Authored by Anders Hagstrom via The Daily Caller,

The U.S.-based Human Rights Foundation (HSF) has worked with North Korean defectors to smuggle flash drives and other tools into their dictatorial homeland to counter the regime’s propaganda throughout 2017.

HSF director Alex Gladstein claims that his organization has successfully smuggled up to 10,000 flash drives into the country containing documentaries countering state narratives, according to The Telegraph.

The organization also uses massive hydrogen balloons plastered with news bulletins to float across the border into North Korea in hopes that citizens will realize their true situation and bring the country down from within.

“This is to liberate minds,” Gladstein told the paper.

 

“We’re creating little windows to the outside world so that the North Korean people can make decisions for themselves about what they want to do with their lives.”

HSF’s “Flash Drives for Freedom” campaign sees volunteers go to great risk smuggling USB sticks through black markets on the China-North Korea border. The majority of North Koreans have devices that can read the flash drives, and since the program began, HSF has smuggled in 2 million hours of footage and 48 million hours of reading material, reaching an estimated 1.1 million North Koreans. According to HSF’s website, the flash drives contain ebooks as well as an offline version of Korean wikipedia.

HSF began the program in 2013 by simply filling hydrogen balloons with DVDs and leaflets and floating them across the border. High level North Korean defectors have said that causing the general population to question their living conditions is one of the most effective ways to attack Kim Jong Un’s regime.

“Given the history of Eastern Europe, I hope that people can think about the potential of information rather than reckless conflict and provocation and totally failed diplomacy,” Gladstein said.

 

“There is nothing the government can do with information, they can’t manipulate it. It’s a very powerful thing.”

Thae Yong-ho, who was once second in command at North Korea’s U.K. embassy before defecting in 2016, calls the general population of North Korea Un’s “Achilles heel.”

“We cannot change the policy of terror of the Kim Jong-un regime,” he said. “But we can educate the North Korean population to stand up by disseminating outside information.”

Kim Orders Military To Test Anthrax: North Korea Will ‘Take Revenge’ On US

The leader of North Korea, Kim Jong-Un, has said he will take revenge on the United States for Washington’s accusal that the rogue regime was responsible for the WannaCry ransomware attack earlier this year. In timely fashion, Kim has also ordered his military to begin the testing of the chemical agent anthrax.

North Korea has been loading anthrax into int’s controversial ballistic missiles. But the regime and military scientists have been trying to ensure that anthrax would survive the high temperatures generated when the missiles re-enter the Earth’s atmosphere.  Anthrax is a serious infectious disease caused by gram-positive, rod-shaped bacteria known as Bacillus anthracis. The regime today rejected the claim as “groundless” and insisted it was fulfilling its obligations under the Biological Weapons Convention (BWC) which prohibits the production or stockpile of biowarfare weapons.

North Korean state television reported last month the launch of a new intercontinental ballistic missile, Hwasong 15, which is a nuclear-capable weapon which could fly as far as America.

A report in Japan’s Asahi newspaper warned the regime may have “already succeeded” in its experiments. The article, which cites an anonymous source connected to South Korean intelligence, says: “North Korea has started experiments such as heat and pressure equipment to prevent anthrax from dying even at a high temperature of over 7,000 degrees generated at the time of ICBM’s re-entry into the atmosphere. In part, there is unconfirmed information that it has already succeeded in such experiments.”

This comes as the regime warns the United States that they will enact revenge for the accusation that North Korea was responsible for the WannaCry ransomware attack that affected 230,000 computers.  “The [WannaCry] attack was widespread and cost billions, and North Korea is directly responsible,” Thomas P. Bossert, Trump’s homeland security adviser, said in an op-ed published in the Wall Street Journal on Monday. “We do not make this allegation lightly. It is based on evidence. We are not alone with our findings, either.”

“This was a reckless attack and it was meant to cause havoc and destruction,” Bossert said at a news conference. Drawing a connection between North Korea’s alleged cyber activities and its development of nuclear weapons, he added, “I think, at this point, North Korea has demonstrated that they want to hold the entire world at risk, whether it be through its nuclear program or cyberattacks.”

“The DPRK, as a state party to the BWC, maintains its consistent stand to oppose development, manufacture, stockpiling and possession of biological weapons,” said North Korean state-run propaganda media. “The more the US clings to the anti-DPRK stifling move, the more hardened the determination of our entire military personnel and people to take revenge will be.”

Despite the North’s denials, experts believe Kim may have one of the largest arsenals of bioweapons in the world.

America Preparing "Bloody Nose" Military Attack On North Korea: Telegraph

While North Korea managed to once again drop off the list of immediate geopolitical concerns having kept relative quiet in recent weeks, without any notable provocations or ICBM launches, this may be changing soon, because according to the Telegraph, America is drawing up plans for a “bloody nose” military attack on North Korea to stop its nuclear weapons program. The UK newspaper"s sources claim that the White House has “dramatically” stepped up preparation for a military solution in recent months amid fears diplomacy is not working. As a result, one option currently under consideration is destroying a launch site before it is used by the regime for a new missile test. Stockpiles of weapons could also be targeted.

The explanation for what would be an act of war, is amusing: "The hope is that military force would show Kim Jong-un that America is “serious” about stopping further nuclear development and trigger negotiations." Well, yes: launching an offensive war does tend to confirm that one is indeed serious. The question is what will China, Russia and the rest of the all too serious world do in response.

“The Pentagon is trying to find options that would allow them to punch the North Koreans in the nose, get their attention and show that we’re serious", said one former US security official briefed on policy.

Some further details:

Donald Trump’s decision to bomb a Syrian government airfield earlier this year to defend America’s “red line” on chemical weapons use is seen as a blueprint.  Details have emerged after this newspaper talked to around a dozen current and former officials in America and Britain about policy towards North Korea.

 

The conversations show that the Trump administration is more willing to consider military options to end the conflict than widely assumed. 

And while it will hardly come as a major surprise, the Telegraph notes that it can be revealed that senior British diplomats fear America has already begun a “step by step” military build-up in the region that could escalate.

Alastair Morgan, the UK ambassador to North Korea, visited Washington DC for behind-closed-doors talks about forcing the regime to the negotiating table last month.  The UK is also urging Southeast Asian and African countries to expel some North Korean diplomats amid fears they are secretly financing the regime.

Meanwhile, in a continuation of a previous US demand, the Trump administration wants North Korean ships to be stopped and searched amid fears they are being used to get round UN sanctions.

The urgency behind the plan, and the pressure to act comes from the drop in estimated time it will take for North Korea to develop a missile that could hit America with nuclear weapons.

Just a few years ago it was believed the regime was a decade away from that point, but now the figure has dropped to as little as 18 months - though estimates vary.  Senior figures in the Trump administration have made clear in public that it would be unacceptable for North Korea to reach that position.  While Mr Trump has always said a “military option” is on the table, the administration"s focus has been on building economic and diplomatic pressure. 

 

But Mr Kim’s refusal to negotiate has left senior White House figures disillusioned with diplomacy and increasingly considering military avenues.  One British source who recently attended a briefing with H.R. McMaster, Mr Trump’s national security adviser, and other officials left feeling alarmed. 

 

“The Americans said deterrence doesn’t work against North Korea and negotiation doesn’t work,” the source said. 

 

“Those who heard them left with the impression that military action is very much an option they were considering seriously.”

Kori Schake, a former director of defense strategy at the White House’s National Security Council who served under George W Bush, said military action is a real possibility. "The White House very strongly believes that either North Korea will agree to give up its nuclear weapons or we will launch a preventative attack to destroy them,” she said.  "I would put the odds of them actually carrying that out at three in 10. Other policy experts say it is four in ten."

Still, war is not a guaranteed outcome. On one hand, British officials are continuing to urge their US counterparts to focus on diplomatic solutions and are looking to increase pressure on North Korea.

Separately, while the Trump administration is considering military options, the Telegraph concedes that "it is not a foregone conclusion that the US president will choose to go down that path.  There are major uncertainties about how Mr Kim would react if provoked and the regime already has missiles that could strike nearby countries including Japan and South Korea. "

Ultimately, and as we have said since early in 2017, the decision to attack North Korea will ultimately come down to whether the generals in Trump"s circle of confidence can and will overpower the diplomats:

Experts also say there is a split in the US administration with Mr Trump and Mr McMaster more willing to consider military action than Rex Tillerson, the secretary of state, and Jim Mattis, the defence secretary. 

The good news is that - for now at least - Trump no longer needs a major foreign diversion, especially after his biggest political victory of the year, with the passage of the GOP Tax Cut, which tangentially, may have also bought Kim Jong-Un a few additional quarters reprieve.

Meet The Team Building North Korea"s Nuclear Missiles

In recent years, North Korea has frustrated the US intelligence community, which has struggled to determine exactly how Kim Jong Un and his regime have managed to make so much progress, so quickly in their quest to develop a nuclear weapon capable of striking the Continental US.

The international community has authorized one round of sanctions after another, and yet they appear to have little impact on the country’s economy. If anything, these efforts have only served to strengthen the Kim’s grip on power by feeding the narrative - taught to every North Korean child - that the US is an evil, imperialist antagonist bent on subjugating the North.

While the exact means by which the North has managed to survive such immense international pressure remain a mystery, the New York Times has a theory: North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has cultivated an aura of reverence and celebrity around the country’s nuclear scientists.

These celebrity scientists are known by nicknames like the “nuclear duo” and the “missile quartet”.

They also occupy a unique place in the North Korea power structure: While Kim, 33, has executed scores of senior officials - including his own uncle - he has turned the scientists into public heros. So far, not one nuclear scientist has been punished by the regime.

“We have never heard of him killing scientists,” said Choi Hyun-kyoo, a senior researcher in South Korea who runs NK Tech, a database of North Korean scientific publications. “He is someone who understands that trial and error are part of doing science."

As a result of this, each of the six nuclear tests conducted since 2006 has been more powerful than the last, an incredible feat of engineering, considering the restraints.

Kim has elevated science as an ideal in the regime’s propaganda and put his fondness for scientists and engineers on prominent display across North Korea.

One of the carrots Kim has offered his prized scientists is a street called “Future Scientists Street”. Opened four years after Kim assumed power in 2011, the street is reportedly filled with gleaming towers for scientists, engineers and their families.

Kim also opened a sprawling complex shaped like an atom that showcases the nation’s achievements in nuclear science, and where decadent galas are held to celebrate the nuclear program’s progress.

There is little doubt what is behind Mr. Kim’s passion for science. In ubiquitous propaganda posters, North Korean rockets soar into space and crash into the United States Capitol.

After successful tests, scientists and engineers are honored with huge outdoor rallies.

While international sanctions prohibit the teaching of science with potential military applications to North Korean students, the regime has hit upon several clever strategies to import nuclear research from the outside world.

Also, the country still manages to send talented students abroad to study science in places like China, India and even Germany.

Kim wasn’t the first North Korean leader to adopt these special privileges for scientists. Indeed, his grandfather, Kim Il-sung, embraced science as he struggled to rebuild North Korea from the ruins of the Korean War. He embraced those trained in Japan when Korea was a Japanese colony and later sent hundreds of students to the Soviet Union, East Germany and other socialist states.

One of them was So Sang-guk, a nuclear scientist who emerged as a key figure in the nation’s nuclear program but seems to have retired.

However, since taking power, Kim Jong-un appears to have overseen a generational shift at the top of the weapons program, elevating a group of scientists and officials about whom little is known.

But now, analysts have identified six figures who have repeatedly appeared alongside Mr. Kim at key moments - four tied to missile development and two associated with nuclear tests.

Two members of the “missile quartet” are scientists, according to state media. Jang Chang-ha is 53 and president of the Academy of National Defense Science, and Jon Il-ho, 61, is commonly described as an “official in the field of scientific research.”

Ri Pyong-chol appears to be the quartet’s highest-ranking member. A former air force commander, he serves as first deputy director of the ruling Workers’ Party’s munitions industry department.

Kim Jong-sik, 49, first began appearing with Kim Jong-un in February 2016 and has an engineering background. His rise has coincided with an acceleration of test launches, but he and Ri did not attend last month’s launch.

Ri Hong-sop is the director of North Korea’s Nuclear Weapons Institute. He appears to be a key figure in the nuclear program.  

Hong Sung-mu, the other member of the “nuclear duo,” is a former chief engineer at the Yongbyon nuclear complex, the birthplace of the North’s nuclear weapons program.

But in perhaps one of the most significant trappings of the scientists’ status in North Korean society is the picture below, where several scientists can be seen sharing a cigarette with Kim - a major privilege considering Kim is revered like a God in North Korea.

After successful tests, sometimes Kim will even embrace his scientists, some of whom can be seen weeping. In another stunning image, Kim can be seen carrying one of the scientists on his back - a play on an old Korean tradition.

North Korea carried out its most powerful nuclear test yet back in September when it detonated what was estimated to be a 300 kiloton bomb. Despite indications that the North’s longtime test site at Punggye-ri is suffering from “tired mountain syndrome”, satellite imaging recently showed the North’s military is hard at work on a new tunnel located in a remote area of the test site...

...Suggesting that the North is already preparing to carry out what would be its seventh nuclear test.
 

US Official: ‘Time is Running OUT’ To Avoid Nuclear War With North Korea

President Donald Trump’s national security adviser warned that now is the time to avoid a war with North Korea. H.R. McMaster, speaking at an event for the British think tank Policy Exchange, said “time is running out” to prevent a nuclear war.

According to Newsweek, McMaster was previewing the new National Security Strategy, a document put out by each administration that shapes how it approaches foreign policy and national security issues during its tenure. Trump will unveil the full document on Monday.

McMaster’s remarks come just after North Korea demonstrated a missile last month that, experts say, puts the continental United States in range. Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un have also traded verbal barbs, with Trump calling Kim “Rocket Man” and Korean government outlets referring to Trump as a “dotard.” Those threats and the advances in North Korea’s nuclear program have heightened tensions on the Korean Peninsula and pushed the two sides toward what experts say would be a horrific nuclear war.

“Now it’s time for all nations to do more,” McMaster said. The National Security Strategy document also includes details about how the administration is dealing with North Korea. McMaster said that policy is focused on the “denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula,” not ousting Kim Jong-Un. That includes potential action against companies that illegally do business with North Korea, along with continued pressure on China to help curb North Korea’s nuclear tests.

“North Korea’s government is dependent on isolation,” said Britain’s national security advisor, Mark Sedwill. “Those who talk about reintegrating North Korea miss the point of that regime,” Sedwill said, lacking confidence that North Korea could ever be normalized.

Another section of the strategy will focus on “cooperation with reciprocity,” a phrase meant to coax U.S. allies to spend more on their own defense, a critical component of Trump’s campaign rhetoric on national security.

US Official: ‘Time Running OUT’ To Avoid Nuclear War With North Korea

President Donald Trump’s national security adviser warned that now is the time to avoid a war with North Korea. H.R. McMaster, speaking at an event for the British think tank Policy Exchange, said “time is running out” to prevent a nuclear war.

According to Newsweek, McMaster was previewing the new National Security Strategy, a document put out by each administration that shapes how it approaches foreign policy and national security issues during its tenure. Trump will unveil the full document on Monday.

McMaster’s remarks come just after North Korea demonstrated a missile last month that, experts say, puts the continental United States in range. Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un have also traded verbal barbs, with Trump calling Kim “Rocket Man” and Korean government outlets referring to Trump as a “dotard.” Those threats and the advances in North Korea’s nuclear program have heightened tensions on the Korean Peninsula and pushed the two sides toward what experts say would be a horrific nuclear war.

“Now it’s time for all nations to do more,” McMaster said. The National Security Strategy document also includes details about how the administration is dealing with North Korea. McMaster said that policy is focused on the “denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula,” not ousting Kim Jong-Un. That includes potential action against companies that illegally do business with North Korea, along with continued pressure on China to help curb North Korea’s nuclear tests.

“North Korea’s government is dependent on isolation,” said Britain’s national security advisor, Mark Sedwill. “Those who talk about reintegrating North Korea miss the point of that regime,” Sedwill said, lacking confidence that North Korea could ever be normalized.

Another section of the strategy will focus on “cooperation with reciprocity,” a phrase meant to coax U.S. allies to spend more on their own defense, a critical component of Trump’s campaign rhetoric on national security.