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US vows it will not submit to North Korean nuclear blackmail
Washington, Aug 29: The United States said today North Korea had made an `explicit acknowledgement` that it had nuclear weapons, but vowed it would not give in to threats or `blackmail.`
Washington, Aug 29: The United States said today
North Korea had made an "explicit acknowledgement" that it had
nuclear weapons, but vowed it would not give in to threats or
"blackmail."
In its first official reaction to three days of six-nation crisis talks in Beijing, the state department said North Korea's threats to launch a nuclear test would further isolate it from the world.
"The DPRK (North Korea) statement is an explicit acknowledgement that the DPRK has nuclear weapons, but the United States will not respond to threats or give in to blackmail," said Jo-Anne Prokopowicz, a departmental spokeswoman.
North Korea had a "long history of provocative statements" she said, and this week's collection echoed a message delivered to a us team during three-way talks in Beijing in April also involving China.
Pyongyang also threatened this time around to test fire a nuclear-capable missile and formally declare itself a nuclear power, according to the US side.
In its first official reaction to three days of six-nation crisis talks in Beijing, the state department said North Korea's threats to launch a nuclear test would further isolate it from the world.
"The DPRK (North Korea) statement is an explicit acknowledgement that the DPRK has nuclear weapons, but the United States will not respond to threats or give in to blackmail," said Jo-Anne Prokopowicz, a departmental spokeswoman.
North Korea had a "long history of provocative statements" she said, and this week's collection echoed a message delivered to a us team during three-way talks in Beijing in April also involving China.
Pyongyang also threatened this time around to test fire a nuclear-capable missile and formally declare itself a nuclear power, according to the US side.
Senior US officials have previously said that they believe that North Korea has enough processed plutonium for one or two nuclear bombs, and assume it has been weaponised.
In addition, the Stalinist state is believed to have the capacity to produce six more bombs using spent fuel rods held under international monitoring until a 1994 anti-nuclear deal folded last year.
Intelligence experts say it is not clear if the
Stalinist state has yet reprocessed those stocks.
Bureau Report