Donald Trump has doubled down on his threats against North Korea, who in return are refusing to back down
TRUMP: 'NORTH KOREAN ASSAULT MAY BE EVEN TOUGHER THAN I SAID'
Donald Trump has warned that military solutions to the ongoing crisis with North Korea are 'locked and load' as the war of words continues.
Tensions continue to escalate between Trump and Kim Jong-un, prompting fears that a devastating conflict could be imminent.
Trump's first tweet of the day was another threat, though qualified with the hope that North Korea would 'find another path'.
Today other countries' positions have been emerging;
- China says it will stay neutral unless America strikes first, in which case it would defend North Korea
- Russia says risks of military conflict are high but is urging both sides to adopt their join solution with China to freeze missile tests and large-scale military exercises
- Germany is pushing for a UN-led diplomatic solution
Read below for the latest updates and the crisis continues;
KEY EVENTS
Russia urges North Korea and the UN to sign up to plan to cool tensions
Russia is urging the US and North Korea to sign up to a plan designed to cool tensions.
The previously unseen proposal, drafted by Russia and China, would see North Korea freeze its missile testing while the US and South Korea would impose a moratorium on large-scale military exercises.
Neither the United States nor North Korea has embraced the plan.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said the risks of a military conflict over North Korea’s nuclear program are very high and Moscow is deeply worried by the threats from Washington and Pyongyang.
'We need to send a strong message to Kim Jong-un': Guam governor backs Donald Trump
The governor of Guam has backed Donald Trump’s stance on North Korea.
As the war of words between the US and Kim Jong-un heats up, Eddie Calvo says he agrees with sending a clear message to North Korea after its missile and nuclear bomb tests were ramped up.
He added: “Though I don’t want the temperature to get any higher, I think it’s important also that there is clarity and that if there is an attack on any American soil including Guam, that it will be met with overwhelming response.”
KEY EVENT
Nuclear attack preparation guidelines have been issued to people living in Guam
Emergency guidelines have been issued to people living in Guam to help them prepare for a potential nuclear attack.
People are being told to avoid looking at the “flash or fireball” as it can blind and to take cover “behind anything that might offer protection”.
They are also advised to remove their clothing to stop radioactive material from spreading.
The guidelines also suggest having an emergency plan and supply kit and making a list of potential concrete structures near home, work and school to serve as fallout shelters.
North Korea has not threatened Guam with a nuclear attack but the heated exchange between the US and North Korea has stirred fears nuclear conflict could break out.
TRUMP SAYS HE'D LIKE TO 'DE-NUKE THE WORLD'
South Korea to expand national civil defence drills as people bulk buy food ready for an emergency
South Korea has revealed it is planning to expand its national civil defence drills as people start to stockpile food in readiness for an emergency.
Hundreds of thousands of troops are already stationed on both sides of the Korean border.
And amid the heated exchange of words between Donald Trump and North Korea, South Koreans are buying more ready meals which could be used in the event of an attack.
US and South Korea to move ahead with planned joint military exercise
The US and South Korea have confirmed they will move ahead as planned with a joint military exercise in 10 days.
It comes after a senior US diplomat has been revealed to have been engaged in back-channel diplomacy with North Korea for several months.
They have been addressing the deteriorating relations between the two countries as well as the issue if Americans currently in prison in North Korea.
Merkel sees no military solution to US/ Korea crisis
German chancellor Angela Merkel says she sees no military solution to the crisis between North Korea and the US.
Mrs Merkel said the war of words was the wrong approach.
“I see the need for enduring work at the UN Security Council... as well as tight co-operation between the countries involved, especially the US and China.
“Germany will be intensively involved in any non-military solutions.
“But an escalation of the rhetoric is the wrong answer.”
Full story on Trump's latest threat
Donald Trump earlier today issued another brash warning to North Korea, warning military options are now ‘locked and loaded’ in case Kim Jong Un acts “unwisely.”
Writing on Twitter, the US President added “hopefully” the dictator will “find another path”.
South Korean military exercises to go ahead in 10 days
A joint US-South Korean military exercise will start on August 21 as planned, the Pentagon said today.
The annual joint military exercise, called Ulchi-Freedom Guardian, is expected to go ahead as originally scheduled, said Lieutenant Colonel Christopher Logan, a Pentagon spokesman.
It comes as the United States and North Korea continue to trade threats of war.
Russia says risks of military conflict are high
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on risks of a military conflict over North Korea’s nuclear programme are very high, and Moscow is deeply worried by the mutual threats of attack traded by Washington and Pyongyang.
“The side that is stronger and cleverer” should take the first step to defuse the crisis, said Lavrov, speaking live on state television at a forum for Russian students.
He encouraged Pyongyang and Washington to sign up to a joint Russian-Chinese plan, under which North Korea would freeze its missile tests and the United States and South Korea would impose a moratorium on large-scale military exercises.
Foreign detainees in North Korea 'denied due process in court and being held in inhumane conditions' UN claims
Foreign detainees in North Korea are reportedly being denied due process in court and being held in inhumane conditions, a United Nations investigator said.
Tomas Ojea Quintana, UN special rapporteur for human rights in North Korea, welcomed the release this week of Canadian Pastor Hyeon Soo Lim on humanitarian grounds.
He had served more than two years of a sentence of hard labour for life on charges of plotting to overthrow the regime.
But at least nine other detainees - three Americans and six citizens of South Korea - remain in custody in North Korea, the UN expert said.
Otto Warmbier, a US student held for 17 months, was released in a coma in June and died within days.
“I am concerned by reports that detainees are not receiving due legal process and are being held in inhumane conditions,” Ojea Quintana said in a statement issued in Geneva.
North Korean authorities are obliged to provide foreigners with access to consular support and an interpreter, “but these entitlements cannot be taken for granted, based on the information I have been receiving”, he said.
Guam residents fearing North Korean attack handed emergency fact sheet on preparing for 'imminent' missile strike
Threatened Guam islanders have been handed an emergency fact sheet on how to prepare for an “imminent” missile attack.
The official leaflet tells residents to “lie flat on the ground” in the event of a strike and avoid looking at the “flash or fireball” - or risk being blinded.
NORTH KOREA STATE TV ANNOUNCES GUAM STRIKE PLAN BY MID-AUGUST
KEY EVENT
Trump tweets military solutions are 'locked and loaded'
Donald Trump has tweeted that military solutions for the ongoing conflict with North Korea are ‘locked and loaded’.
The president is clearly continuing his approach of ramping up the inflammatory language rather than backing down.
It’s the latest in a series of threats between the two countries in the last week.
South Koreans 'stocking up on ready meals'
South Koreans are buying more ready to eat meals and the government plans to expand nation-wide civil defence drills planned for this month as rhetoric between North Korea and the United States ramps up tension.
Long used to living within the range of North Korea’s artillery, people in the South have generally ignored its aggressiveness and series of nuclear and long-range missile tests.
But this week, as Pyongyang exchanged increasingly angry words with the United States, there are worries of a clash erupting along the heavily militarised frontier which divides the two Koreas.
Combat Ration Inc, which makes 2 billion won ($1.75 million) of annual revenue selling ready to eat meals, said sales had surged as much as 50 percent in the past week compared to the average.
“Since 2006, when North Korea first conducted its nuclear test, there wasn’t this much response as people became immune to frequent missile launches and nuclear tests,” said Yoon Hee-yeul, the chief executive of Combat Ration, based in the southeastern city of Daegu.
“I feel it’s different this time,” said Yoon, who’s been in the business since 2004.
Ready to eat meals maker Babmart, based in eastern Seoul, and another Seoul-based online seller, jun2food.com, also said sales have increased.
Officials at both companies attributed the surge to the heightened tension.
North Korea says America 'could be reduced to ashes any moment'
North Korea claims America could be turned “to ashes any moment” as
Kim Jong-un warned “gangster-like U.S” imperialists that it will “dearly pay” for its “reckless behaviour” after Donald Trump threatened to unleash “fire and fury” on the country.
The latest threats came two days after the country revealed its plans to strike Guam, a remote Pacific Island belonging to the US.
Trump retaliated to the plans by claiming the country should be “very very nervous” as “things can happen to them that they never thought possible.”
State broadcaster Rodong Sinmun claimed the threats were “last-ditch efforts of the toothless wolf scared by the might of the DPRK (Democratic People’s Republic of Korea).”
Read the full story here.
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Stocks tumble for fourth day
World stocks tumbled for a fourth day and were on course for their worst week since November, as the escalating war of words over North Korea drove investors today toward the yen, the Swiss franc and gold.
Europe’s main London, Frankfurt and Paris markets started between 0.5 and 1.1 percent lower and Germany’s ultra-safe 10-year government bonds were trading at their highest prices since June.
Trump issued a new verbal warning to Pyongyang on Thursday, saying that his previous promise to unleash “fire and fury” may not have been strong enough after North Korea responded with a threat to land a missile near the US Pacific territory of Guam.
Guam resident: 'We're just going to barbecue and
have fun'
On Guam, the tropical island more than 2,000 miles to the southeast of North Korea, residents remained philosophical.
“We’re just gonna sit down and barbecue here and have fun,” said Peter Toves, 47, a Guam native who rents out kayaks and jetskis.
“There’s nothing we can do, just wait.”
China calls for all sides to not take turns showing strength
The Chinese foreign ministry has called on all sides not to take turns in showing strength.
North Korea’s sole ally in the region has been making its views known this morning, saying it will remain neutral unless the US strikes first.
“China hopes all sides can do more to help ease the present tense situation and increase mutual trust, rather than taking turns in shows of strength,” the ministry said in a short statement on its website.
Japan preparing defence missile to shoot North Korean bomb out the sky
Japan is taking steps to combat a potential nuclear attack from North Korea.
The country has prepared a guided Patriot (PAC 3) - one of the most advanced, capable and powerful terminal air defence missiles in the world.
Military experts are looking to place it on the island of Shikoku, centering on the three prefectures of Shimane, Hiroshima and Kochi, which are situated in between North Korea and Guam.
Defence Minister Itsunori Onodera said last night: “We will take necessary measures while considering various things.”
Onodera told a lower house of parliament committee that Japan would be allowed to hit a missile headed towards the U.S. Pacific territory if it was judged to be an existential threat to Japan.
Experts say Japan does not currently have the capability to shoot down a missile flying over its territory headed for Guam.
South Korea beefs-up military muscle amid US-North Korea tensions
The escalating threat arising from nuclear-armed North Korea’s recent series of missile tests is prompting South Korea to beef up its military muscle.
South Korea and Japan are accustomed to the North’s frequent threats to attack.
But the war of words between Washington and Pyongyang has raised fears of a sudden clash along the world’s most militarised border dividing the two Koreas, which might quickly escalate to all-out war.
After North Korea’s second test of an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) on July 28, South Korean President Moon Jae-in ordered a speedy deployment of the controversial US THAAD anti-missile defence system, reversing his earlier decision to postpone it pending an environmental review.
This week, the US Defence Department said it was “actively” considering revising bilateral ballistic missile guidelines with South Korea to allow Seoul to build more powerful missiles -- at the South’s request.
Moon told Trump in a telephone conversation on Monday South Korea also wants to build a nuclear-powered submarine, presidential officials said. “All of this could lead to further militarisation of South Korea,” said Yang Uk, a senior research fellow at the Korea Defence and Security Forum.
KEY EVENT
China will intervene if America attacks North Korea first
China will intervene if America attacks North Korea first - but will stay neutral if Kim Jong-un attacks the US first.
An editorial in the Global Times, warned that “China should also make clear that if North Korea launches missiles that threaten US soil first and the US retaliates, China will stay neutral.
“If the US and South Korea carry out strikes and try to overthrow the North Korean regime and change the political pattern of the Korean Peninsula, China will prevent them from doing so.”
SOPHIE EVANS
Inside the paradise island of Guam threatened with missile strike by North Korea
With its sandy beaches, sparkling clear waters and balmy temperatures, the island of Guam looks like the perfect holiday destination.
But the remote paradise in the Pacific Ocean is more than it appears at first glance - for it is an important strategic US military outpost.
The island, which stretches 210 square miles, is home to a number of military installations and at least 6,000 servicemen and women.
An American territory, it hosts bombers with nuclear capabilities - which would likely make it an appealing target for a nuclear attack.
It also has a submarine squadron, an airbase and a Coast Guard group.
On Wednesday, North Korea, situated around 2,100 miles away to the northwest of Guam, said it was considering plans for a missile strike on the territory.
Read the full story here.
Mass rally backs North Korea in defiance against Trump
North Korea’s official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) released photos of a rally in support of North Korea’s stance against the US, on Kim Il-Sung square in Pyongyang.
The country’s leaders said US President Donald Trump was “bereft of reason” and would only respond to force, as it elaborated on a threat to attack the US Pacific territory of Guam.
KEY EVENT
Britain 'won't back Donald Trump in military strike on North Korea' but could help spy on nuclear bases
Britain won’t play a role in any military strike on North Korea , it has been claimed.
Kim Jong-Un’s regime has ramped up threats to unleash missileson US territory in Guam.
It followed Donald Trump’s warning the rogue state faces “fire and fury” if it fails to curb its nuclear testing.
NORTH KOREA CALL DONALD TRUMP “SENILE”ON NEWS REPORT AS TENSIONS CONTINUE
It is feared the US is moving towards a military solution to deal with North Korea’s increasing threat.
But reports last night suggest Britain will only support diplomatic resolutions through the UN.
A senior government source told The Sun: “The Americans are more than capable of doing what they might want, or have to do, in the region without our help.”
Read the full story here.
Kim Jong-un to decide 'by mid-August' whether to fire missiles at Guam
North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un will decide in “mid-August” whether to fire four missile rockets at US targets in Guam.
A fresh statement from the secretive regime emerged on Wednesday night after a war of words between the US and North Korea escalated dramatically in the past 48 hours.
“The Hwasong-12 rockets to be launched by the KPA (Korean People’s Army) will cross the sky above Shimane, Hiroshima and Koichi Prefectures of Japan,” said General Kim Rak Gyom.
“They will fly 3,356.7 km for 1,065 seconds and hit the waters 30 to 40 km away from Guam.”
The North added that President Donald Trump’s “fire and fury” comments earlier this week are a “load of nonsense”, saying only “absolute force can work on him.”
North Korea 'examining missile attack' after Trump threat
North Korea is “carefully examining” a plan to launch a missile strike on Guam - the US Naval Base in the Pacific.
It comes after President Donald Trump threatened the regime with “fire and fury like the world has never seen”.
Trump’s dramatic attack came amid claims North Korea’s nuclear capabilities have progressed and the country can now produce a mini nuclear warhead able to fit inside its missiles.
Arms folded angrily, President Trump said: “North Korea best not make any more threats to the United States.
“They will be met with fire and fury like the world has never seen.
“He has been very threatening beyond a normal statement.
“And as I said, they will be met with fire, fury and frankly power the likes of which this world has never seen before. Thank you.”
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