|
Post by Admin on Jan 29, 2018 18:26:10 GMT
KIM Jong-un has nearly blown the entire “slush fund” he inherited from his dad on nuclear tests, it has been claimed. According to The Sun, the chubby dictator no longer has enough to run his secretive kingdom. The nation’s participation in the Winter Olympic Games is said to be part of a bid to boost its economy, sources allege. Trigger happy Kim has staged a series of pricey nuke trials since taking over as leader after the death of his father Kim Jong-il in 2011. But sources in China with close links to Pyongyang’s elite say the funds the 34-year-old inherited have all but gone up in smoke, reports Radio Free Asia.
|
|
|
Post by Admin on Feb 7, 2018 18:33:17 GMT
The Trump administration outlined sweeping changes in U.S. nuclear strategy Friday, calling for two new types of nuclear weapons and warning for the first time that in "extreme circumstances" the U.S. could use nuclear weapons in response to non-nuclear attacks on infrastructure and civilians. The strategy, described in a 75-page review released by the Pentagon, constitutes one of the most significant revisions of U.S. nuclear strategy since the Cold War, one aimed at aggressively countering nuclear-armed Russia and North Korea as well as terrorist groups seeking to acquire nuclear arms. By clarifying potential scenarios when the president might authorize a nuclear attack, officials said, the U.S. was seeking to deter adversaries from conducting large-scale cyber warfare and other non-nuclear but potentially devastating attacks on the U.S. and its allies, a controversial idea that critics said could make nuclear war more likely. "We must look reality in the eye and see the world as it is, not as we wish it to be," Defense Secretary James N. Mattis said in a statement accompanying the report. "Given the range of potential adversaries, their capabilities and strategic objectives, this review calls for a flexible, tailored nuclear deterrent strategy."
|
|
|
Post by Admin on Feb 8, 2018 18:13:30 GMT
Trump's strategy likewise calls for using nuclear weapons only "in extreme circumstances to defend the vital interests of the United States, its allies and partners." But it specifies that extreme circumstances also could include "non-nuclear strategic attacks" including those on the "U.S., allied or partner civilian population or infrastructure," as well as "on U.S. or allied nuclear forces, their command and control, or warning and attack assessment capabilities." The review recommends modifying "a small number" of existing nuclear warheads on Trident missiles carried on U.S. submarines to reduce the weapons' explosive power. In addition, a new nuclear-armed cruise missile launched from naval vessels would be developed, a process likely to take years. Both steps, the report says, are aimed at deterring "regional aggression," including any decision by Russia, North Korea or other adversaries to carry out a limited nuclear strike in the belief that the U.S. would not respond because it did not want to risk large-scale nuclear war. The lower-yield warhead for Trident missiles would "ensure a prompt response option" and would help counter any "mistaken perception" by Russia, North Korea or other adversaries that the U.S. might hesitate to respond with nuclear weapons to a limited nuclear strike by one of them, the report said.
|
|
|
Post by Admin on Feb 10, 2018 18:22:40 GMT
South Korean officials believe that North Korean hackers stole tens of millions of dollars' worth in cryptocurrencies last year, according to local reports.
Kyodo News reports that the National Intelligence Service (NIS), briefing the country's lawmakers on the cyber attacks, said that phishing scams and other methods had yielded tens of billions of won in customer funds. The news service notably reported that authorities in South Korea are probing whether the same hackers were behind last month's attack on Coincheck, which led to the theft of more than $500 million in cryptocurrency.
Reclusive North Korea has been implicated in exchange hacks and scams on numerous occasions, as well as unsuccessful attempts at stealing cryptocurrencies from trading sites, as previously reported. Last year, police officials claimed that North Korean attackers attempted to trick 25 employees at four exchanges with spear phishing attacks, though none appeared to have fallen for the ruse.
The attempted thefts were first reported by cybersecurity firm FireEye, and later confirmed by government officials.
The rogue nation seems to be going after cryptocurrencies as a way to evade financial sanctions imposed by the United Nations, particularly sanctions voted in after the country's recent nuclear missile tests.
|
|
|
Post by Admin on Feb 25, 2018 18:22:38 GMT
Ivanka Trump is leading a US delegation to the Winter Olympics in South Korea in an effort to show a softer side of US diplomacy on the peninsula while calling for maximum pressure to be put on North Korea. Trump watched snowboarding events in Pyeongchang with South Korea’s first lady, Kim Jung-sook, and foreign minister Kang Kyung-wha. Wearing a Team USA hat and red snowsuit, she captured the attention of local media. Her trip comes less than two weeks after Kim Yo-jong, Kim Jong-un’s younger sister, visited the South and largely overshadowed US vice president Mike Pence. At a dinner on Friday, Ivanka Trump’s message of “maximum pressure” seemed to clash with South Korean president Moon Jae-in’s strategy of denuclearisation through dialogue. Experts have said the North’s recent diplomatic overtures are aimed at driving a wedge between Washington and Seoul, and the mixed messages suggested there may be tension between the allies. “Active dialogue is being held between the South and the North amid the North’s participation in the Olympics,” Moon said, according to the Yonhap news agency. “This is greatly contributing to easing tension on the Korean Peninsula and improving the South-North relationship.”
|
|