(3rd Stage of an Underground Nuclear Test)
The BBC, and other, news outlets are reporting that North Korean has appeared to have conducted its 5th nuclear test. An artificial earthquake, measuring 5.3 on the Richter Scale, was recorded near its Punggye-ri testing site. The reporting on this is clearly going to change over the next 24-72 hours, so stay tuned.
My professional opinion, with the caveat that I’m not a North Korean specialist and that North Korea epitomizes the International Relations phrase “the black box of the state” and is almost completely opaque to outside observation, is that the North Koreans treat their engagement with the outside world the way a young child does with its parents. I’m not trying to infantilize the North Koreans, their culture, their society, or their leadership, but I think there’s a clear pattern. When something is going on that involves their patron China interacting with the US or other world powers or its regional competitors, especially South Korea, interacting with the US or other world powers, then the North Koreans act out to get attention. And with the ASEAN Summit winding down in Laos and coming on the heels of the G20 summit in China, North Korea once again acts out and once again the whole world turns and gives it attention. Again, this reporting will change and/or solidify over the next 24-72 hours so more to follow.
Update at 12:50 AM EST:
Soonergrunt has let us know in comments that the Independent NK News has confirmed the test:
NK live broadcast says: NK conducted nuclear test to check power of nuclear warhead. No radioactive leakages.
Breaking News: Possible (Probable?) 5th North Korean Nuclear TestPost + Comments (84)