DONALD Trump has warned of a "severe" punishment for Kim Jong-un following North Korea's intercontinental ballistic missile test. Here is the latest news and live updates on North Korea.
- North Korea successfully tested an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) capable of reaching Alaska.
- The US and South Korea staged a joint military exercise, firing missiles at the North.
- Kim Jong-un called the launch “a gift for the American b******s” and has vowed to “frequently send gift packages” to the US.
- Donald Trump has said that the US is considering some "pretty severe things" in response.
Thursday July 6
4.57pm: Russia has openly objected to the UN’s condemnation of North Korea’s Tuesday missile launch because the US named the rocket as an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM)."The rationale is that based on our (Ministry of Defence's) assessment we cannot confirm that the missile can be classified as an ICBM," Russia's U.N. mission said in an email to its Security Council colleagues.
"Therefore we are not in a position to agree to this classification on behalf of the whole council since there is no consensus on this issue," the email concluded.
Security Council statements need to be unanimously agreed upon by all 15 member states.
1.30pm: Donald Trump has vowed to “very strongly” confront North Korea over its missile tests, when he addressed a press conference in Poland’s capital Warsaw.
Following a meeting with his Polish counterpart, Andrzej Duda, Mr Trump labelled the hermit state "a threat.”
“They are behaving in a very, very dangerous manner and something will have to be done,” Mr Trump underlined.
11.00am: Boris Johnson has condemned North Korea’s intercontinental ballistic missile test “reckless”, and has called on China to increase pressure on Pyongyang.
”What the North Koreans are doing is reckless, it's indefensible, it's in defiance of (United Nations) resolutions,” the Foreign Secretary told the BBC.
"The single most important thing is that the country with the most direct economic relationship with North Korea, that is China, has got to continue to put on the pressure.
“And in the last six months or so we are seeing some real changes in Beijing's attitude to North Korea and that's got to go further."
10.10am: Donald Trump has said that the US is considering some “pretty severe things” in response to North Korea’s “very, very bad behaviour”.
Speaking alongside Polish President Andrzej Duda, Mr Trump said that he would look at what happens over the coming weeks and months, but did not draw any red lines.
"We must confront the threat from North Korea, that’s what it is it’s a threat, and we will confront it very strongly," Mr Trump said.
"President Duda and I call on all nations to confront this global threat and publicly demonstrate to North Korea that there are consequences for their very, very bad behaviour."
"There are severe things that we are thinking about, but it doesn't mean we are going to do them. I dont draw red lines, we will take a look at what happens over the coming weeks and months.
"It is a shame they are behaving this way. They are behaving in a dangerous manner and something will have to be done about it."
7.40am: The US Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley has said that Washington is prepared to use military force against North Korea after its “reckless and irresponsible” missile test.
Ms Haley called the launch a "clear and sharp military escalation”.
"One of our capabilities lies with our considerable military forces,” she said.
“We will use them if we must, but we prefer not to have to go in that direction."
Other options include harsher sanctions on Pyongyang, Ms Haley said, proposing that the US could go as far as cutting links with countries that trade with North Korea.
North Korea live pictures: Kim Jong-un v Donald Trump
Ambassador Joseph Yun will travel to Singapore July 11-13 to attend the conference of the Northeast Asia Cooperation Dialogue (NEACD), and will then travel to Myanmar.
Mr Yun negotiated Pyongyang's release of Otto Warmbier, a U.S. student sentenced to 15 years hard labor for trying to steal an item with a propaganda slogan, who returned to the United States in a coma on June 13 and died June 19.
While visiting the North to secure his release, Yun met three other Americans held there.
8.45pm: The US Ambassador to the UN has warned North Korea's actions are "quickly closing off the possibility of a diplomatic solution" and the United States was prepared to defend itself and its allies.
Nikki Haley said: "One of our capabilities lies with our considerable military forces. We will use them if we must, but we prefer not to have to go in that direction."
She said the United States would propose new U.N. sanctions on North Korea "in the coming days."
Ms Haley also warned that Washington was prepared to cut off trade with countries trading with North Korea in violation of U.N. resolutions.
7.47pm: South Korean president Moon Jae-in has urged major global powers to consider sanctions against North Korea in response to Tuesday’s missile launch.
"This is a great threat and provocation,” Mr Moon said at a press conference with German Chancellor Angela Merkel.
He added: ”North Korea should stop immediately... We should work on more sanctions.”
Ms Merkel mirrored his concerns when she said she would discuss with him ways in which sanctions can be increased.
6.39pm: The two-stage missile fired on Tuesday by North Korea is being treated by the US intelligence as a brand new type of weapon, US officials have told CNN.
According to the news broadcaster, the first part of the missile was made of the well known KN-17 model, but the second stage remains a mystery.
CNN’s calculations determined that the unknown part gave the rocket an additional 30-second burn cycle, which allowed it to travel a longer distance.
5.23pm: The US military boldly said it is capable of defending the United Stated against the “nascent” threat of North Korea’s intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBM).
Pentagon spokesman Navy Captain Jeff Davis reminded of a successful missile interceptor test carried out in June.
The test simulated Pyongyang firing an ICBM at mainland US, and the incoming target was successfully destroyed mid-air.
The summit will see the US President come face-to-face with his Chinese and Russian counterparts for the first time since their joint statement on North Korea – and for the first time ever in the case of Russia’s Vladimir Putin.
While most eyes will be on the Trump-Putin meeting, it will be interesting to see if Mr Trump follows up his recent criticism of China’s North Korea policy in person.
Mr Trump has expressed some frustration with China’s failure to curb Pyongyang’s nuclear programme.
2.00pm: Donald Trump has attacked China’s trade with North Korea in a tweet which questions Beijing’s loyalties.
The US President wrote: “Trade between China and North Korea grew almost 40% in the first quarter. So much for China working with us - but we had to give it a try!”
China is North Korea’s largest trading partner and ally, however relations between the two have cooled as Kim Jong-un ramps up his nuclear programme.
Mr Trump has criticised Beijing for its modest attempts to put pressure on Pyongyang.
After Kim Jong-un launched an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) on Tuesday morning, Mr Trump tweeted: “Perhaps China will put a heavy move on North Korea and end this nonsense once and for all!”
11.25pm: North Korea’s state news agency, KCNA, has released new pictures of Kim Jong-un celebrating the test launch of an intercontinental ballistic missile.
The rogue dictator is pictured hugging a military official after the successful launch of the warhead, which analysts have said is capable of reaching Alaska.
The North Korean leader hugged a military official after the missile was launched
"The task of the denuclearization of the entire Korean peninsula cannot and should not be used as a disguise for attempts to change North Korea's regime. This is our common position," Mr Lavrov told a news conference.
The latest joint statement from the two world powers comes after China’s Xi Jinping met with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow.
The leaders vowed to work together on a diplomatic solution to Pyongyang’s nuclear threat, and condemned Kim Jong-un’s latest missile test.
At the end of a two-day state visit, Mr Xi declared that relations between Russia and China were at their “best time in history”.
10.00am: North Korea has said that its newly developed intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) is capable of carrying a large nuclear warhead.
Kim Jong-un said that yeserday’s completed his country's strategic weapons capability that includes atomic and hydrogen bombs and ICBMs, the state KCNA news agency said.
Pyongyang would not negotiate with the US to give up those weapons until Washington abandons its “hostile” policy against the North, Kim is reported to have said.
8.30am: An ex-CIA expert has said that she “can absolutely see” North Korea launching a military strike against the US.
Speaking on the BBC’s Newsnight, Dr Sue Mi Terry said: “It’s conceivable.
“It’s not likely, they are not going to just preemptively use it because they know that it would mean the end of the regime and the end of the state as they know it.
"But if they thought that we were entering regime change mode or if military confrontation was on the way, I can absolutely see them using it – in fact the North Koreans have told me that they would use it.
“They have not spent years of hardship pursuing this nuclear weapons programme just to perish without using them.”
6.00am: Kim Jong-un called yesterday’s missile launch “a gift for the American b******s”, North Korea’s state KCNA news agency report.
The Pyongyang mouthpiece said that Kim broke into a “broad smile” as he “feasted his eyes” on the nuclear-capable warhead.
He reportedly urged scientists to “frequently send big and small ‘gift packages’ to the Yankees”, a chilling warning that more tests could be forthcoming.
"The drills showcased precision targeting of the enemy's leadership in case of an emergency," a South Korean Defence Ministry statement said.
The exercise came hours after China and Russia issued a call for North Korea to stop its nuclear and missile programs, in exchange for a pause in US-South Korea military drills.
"The situation in the region affects the national interests of both countries," a joint statement said.
"Russia and China will work in close coordination to advance a solution to the complex problem of the Korean Peninsula in every possible way."
Mr Tillerson called the missile test "a new escalation of the threat to the United States, our allies and partners, the region, and the world” in a statement last night.
"Global action is required to stop a global threat," he said. "Any country that hosts North Korean guest workers, provides any economic or military benefits, or fails to fully implement UN Security Council resolutions is aiding and abetting a dangerous regime."
Earlier, the Pentagon confirmed that North Korea’s test was an ICBM, after a previous assessment determined the launch to be an intermediate range missile.
"The launch continues to demonstrate that North Korea poses a threat to the United States and our allies," a Pentagon statement said.
It hit its target in the Sea of Japan “precisely” after flying for 39 minutes.
A North Korea state television report claimed that the state now has the technology to target "anywhere in the world".
"As a strongest nuclear state with the best ICBM rockets, North Korea will end the US nuclear war threats and defence peace and stability of the Korean peninsula," a reporter said.
Analysts have said that the missile could be capable of targeting Alaska, but not the rest of the US.
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