TOKYO (AP) — The Latest on the nuclear test North Korea conducted Sunday — its sixth and largest so far (all times local):
12:10 a.m.
North Korea’s neighbors are looking for radiation from its nuclear test, but they might not find any.
A man watches a TV news report about a possible nuclear test conducted by North Korea at the Seoul Railway station in Seoul, South Korea, Sunday, Sept. 3, 2017. South Korean officials say they have detected an earthquake in North Korea and are analyzing whether Pyongyang has conducted its sixth nuclear test. The signs read ” The presidential Blue House analyzing whether North Korea has conducted its sixth nuclear test”. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)
The North said the underground test site where it detonated what it described as a hydrogen bomb did not leak radioactive materials. If that’s true, it will be difficult for outsiders to determine whether the device was indeed a thermonuclear weapon or a simpler nuclear bomb.
Japan’s Nuclear Regulation Authority says no abnormal change in radiation levels had been detected on monitoring posts across the country as of Sunday night.
China’s National Nuclear Safety Administration says it activated nuclear radiation-related environmental contingency plans shortly after the test was conducted. It said in a statement on its website that automatic environmental radiation monitoring stations in China’s northeast were operating normally.
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12:09 a.m.
Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin have discussed North Korea’s nuclear test in a meeting on the sidelines of a Beijing-led summit of five large emerging economies.
The official Xinhua News Agency said Sunday the two leaders “unanimously agreed to adhere to the goal of the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, have close communication and coordination and properly respond” to Sunday’s test.
North Korea detonated what it called a hydrogen bomb. It was its sixth and most powerful nuclear test to date.
The blast could overshadow the summit of BRICS nations — Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. It’s being held Monday and Tuesday in the southeastern Chinese city of Xiamen.
Xi gave a speech to business representatives of the five countries on Sunday without mentioning the test.
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12:07 a.m.
Finland has strongly condemned North Korea’s nuclear test, saying it continues that country’s “series of grave violations of international obligations, which have become more common during this year.”
Describing the test as “a very dangerous and irresponsible act that will further aggravate the situation,” Foreign Minister Timo Soini said Sunday that claims the test was the strongest conducted by North Korea so far and that according to its own statement was a hydrogen bomb “are particularly alarming.”
In neighboring Sweden, Foreign Minister Margot Wallstrom tweeted that the test was “a turn for the worse. Further endangers international peace, stability. UNSC role important,” while Norway’s foreign minister, Borge Brende, said North Korea’s action was “totally unacceptable” and urged the international community to react.
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12:05 a.m.
British Prime Minister Theresa May has said the North Korean weapon test poses an “unacceptable further threat” to the international community.
May said in a statement Sunday that the international community must come together to increase the pressure on North Korea.
She said tougher action is needed, including speeding up the implementation of sanctions.
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12 a.m.
The head of the U.N. test ban treaty organization says the sanctions against North Korea over its nuclear weapons program aren’t working.
Lassina Zerbo, who heads the Vienna-based Comprehensive Test Ban Organization, also notes that while North Korea previously announced its nuclear tests in advance, now the announcements are coming hours after the test.
Zerbo said that international sanctions seem not to be stopping the North “from going beyond the acceptable in terms of their nuclear weapons program.”
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11:40 p.m.
Sen. Ted Cruz says North Korea’s nuclear test calls for serious steps to prevent it from using those weapons, including economic sanctions.
Speaking Sunday on ABC’s “This Week,” Cruz said the U.S. should “use economic leverage to go against not only North Korea but every financial institution, every company that does business with North Korea.” He said most of them rely on the U.S. financial system, “so cutting off their money is another critical part” to putting pressure on Pyongyang.
The Texas Republican, a member of the Armed Services Committee, also called for enhancing missile defense to give the U.S. the capability to destroy an ICBM fired from North Korea.
He said President Donald Trump was right to talk tough with the North Korean leader, who he said only understands and respects strength.
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11 p.m.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin says he is putting together new sanctions seeking to cut off trade with North Korea after it detonated a thermonuclear device in its sixth and most powerful nuclear test.
Speaking on “Fox News Sunday,” Mnuchin described Pyongyang’s behavior as “completely unacceptable.”
Mnuchin says the sanctions package being drafted for President Donald Trump’s consideration will make clear that if countries want to do business with the U.S., they will have to cut off North Korea economically.
Mnuchin says the U.S. is continuing to work with allies and China to exert pressure on North Korea.
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10:45 p.m.
The office of German Chancellor Angela Merkel says North Korea’s provocations have “reached a new dimension” with the nation’s sixth nuclear test.
Merkel spoke on the phone Sunday with French president Emmanuel Macron. Her office says both leaders “condemn North Korea’s new nuclear tests in the sharpest possible terms” and that “the latest provocation by the rulers in Pyongyang has reached a new dimension.”
Macron’s office said he, Merkel and Italian Prime Minister Paolo Gentiloni agree on the need for a “strong international reaction” against North Korea, including new sanctions from the European Union.
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10:25 p.m.
The White House says President Donald Trump and his national security team plan a meeting later Sunday to discuss North Korea, in the wake of the North’s announcement that it has conducted its most powerful nuclear test to date.
The White House says the president’s team is “monitoring this closely.”
Trump has reacted to the test by calling North Korea “a rogue nation” whose “words and actions continue to be very hostile and dangerous to the United States.”
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9:25 p.m.
Britain and Italy are among the many nations condemning North Korea over its sixth nuclear test Sunday.
British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson called the test “reckless” in a statement and said “all options are on the table.”
Italian Foreign Minister Angelino Alfano said in a statement that North Korea must immediately abandon its nuclear and missile development program.
He also urged the North Koreans to stop going down the path of increasing self-isolation. Alfano pledged that Italy would do its part to at achieve a “firm and cohesive response” by the international community to North Korea’s latest challenge.
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9:20 p.m.
The European Union’s foreign policy chief says North Korea’s sixth nuclear test represents a “major provocation” and “a grave threat to regional and international security.”
Federica Mogherini also said in a statement that Pyongyang “must abandon its nuclear, weapons of mass destruction and ballistic missile programs in a complete, verifiable and irreversible manner and immediately cease all related activities.”
Mogherini said she will meet Monday with Yukiya Amano, head of the International Atomic Energy Agency, to discuss North Korea.
North Korea’s nuclear test Sunday was apparently its most powerful yet. The country’s state-controlled media say it was a thermonuclear device and a “perfect success.”
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9:15 p.m.
NATO’s secretary-general has strongly condemned North Korea’s sixth nuclear test, calling it “yet another flagrant violation of multiple U.N. Security Council resolutions.”
Jens Stoltenberg also said in a statement that “NATO is concerned by Pyongyang’s destabilizing pattern of behavior, which poses a threat to regional and international security.”
He called on North Korea to “immediately cease all existing nuclear and ballistic missile activities in a complete, verifiable, and irreversible manner, and re-engage in dialogue with the international community.”
North Korea’s nuclear test Sunday was apparently its most powerful yet. The country’s state-controlled media say it was a thermonuclear device and a “perfect success.”
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9 p.m.
The head of the U.N. atomic energy agency says the latest test of a nuclear weapon by North Korea is of “grave concern.” He’s urging Pyongyang to heed U.N. demands to stop such testing and mothball its nuclear program.
Yukiya Amano says the International Atomic Energy Agency “continues to closely follow developments.” But while the IAEA is policing Iran’s nuclear program, its abilities to monitor the North’s program are limited.
Its inspectors have been shut out of the country since 2002, and North Korea unilaterally withdrew from the nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty a year later.
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8:45 p.m.
President Donald Trump has reacted to what he’s calling “a major Nuclear Test” by North Korea — branding the North “a rogue nation” whose “words and actions continue to be very hostile and dangerous” to the United States.
North Korea says it has conducted its sixth and most powerful nuclear test to date — and claiming a “perfect success.”
Trump tweets that North Korea “has become a great threat and embarrassment to China, which is trying to help but with little success.”
China is by far the North’s biggest trading partner.
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7:25 p.m.
French President Emmanuel Macron has condemned “in the strongest possible terms” North Korea’s sixth nuclear test.
In a written statement, Macron “calls on the members of the United Nations Security Council to quickly react to this new violation by North Korea of international law.”
He also calls for a “united and clear reaction of the European Union.”
He says the international community “must treat this new provocation with the utmost firmness” to bring North Korea back to the path of dialogue and give up its nuclear and missile programs.
North Korea’s nuclear test Sunday was apparently its most powerful yet. State-controlled media say it was a hydrogen bomb. South Korea’s weather agency says the detonation set off a magnitude 5.7 earthquake.
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6:35 p.m.
The Russian Foreign Ministry says North Korea’s claim to have tested a hydrogen bomb “deserves the strongest condemnation.” It’s calling for all parties to refrain from escalating tensions further.
The ministry issued a statement Sunday urging immediate dialogue and negotiations. It says that’s the only way settle the Korean Peninsula’s problems, “including the nuclear one.”
The ministry says Russia reaffirms its readiness to participate in negotiations, “including in the context of the implementation of the Russian-Chinese road map.” Under that proposal, North Korea would suspend nuclear and missile tests in exchange for the U.S. and South Korea suspending their joint military exercises.
North Korea’s nuclear test Sunday was apparently its most powerful yet. The country’s state-controlled media say it was a thermonuclear device and a “perfect success.”
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6:20 p.m.
A Chinese expert on North Korea says the country conducted its sixth nuclear test Sunday to damage the atmosphere at the summit of the Chinese-led group of large and emerging countries known as BRICS.
The summit of leaders from Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa is being held Monday and Tuesday in the southeastern Chinese city of Xiamen. A related business forum opened Sunday with a keynote speech by Chinese President Xi Jinping, who said nothing of the missile test.
Cheng Xiaohe (CHUHNG-She’ow-huh) of Renmin University says the latest test means “the Korean Peninsula situation will be at a stage of new crisis.”
He says North Korea has demonstrated that it is not afraid of any pressure, which leaves other parties with few options.
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6 p.m.
China’s foreign ministry has condemned North Korea’s sixth nuclear test.
The ministry said in a statement Sunday that the Chinese government has “expressed firm opposition and strong condemnation” of Sunday’s detonation.
China urged North Korea to “stop taking erroneous actions that deteriorate the situation.”
North Korea’s nuclear test Sunday was apparently its most powerful yet. The country’s state-controlled media say it was a thermonuclear device.
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5:10 p.m.
South Korea says it wants to answer North Korea’s sixth nuclear test with the strongest measures possible.
South Korea’s National Security Director Chung Eui-yong said Sunday that President Moon Jae-in will seek every available diplomatic measure, including new sanctions from the United Nations Security Council. He says Moon will also discuss with Washington ways to deploy the “strongest strategic assets” the U.S. has to completely isolate Pyongyang.
The president’s office would not comment on it means by “strongest strategic assets.”
The response comes in the wake of the North’s confirmation that it has successfully tested a hydrogen bomb of “unprecedented” strength meant to be loaded into an intercontinental ballistic missile. The nuclear test triggered a strong earthquake.
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4:10 p.m.
South Korea’s presidential office says the security chiefs for Seoul and Washington have spoken following North Korea’s sixth nuclear test.
The office says U.S. National Security Adviser H.R. McMaster spoke with his South Korean counterpart, Chung Eui-yong, for 20 minutes in an emergency phone call about an hour after the detonation.
North Korea’s nuclear test Sunday was apparently its most powerful yet. State-controlled media say it was a hydrogen bomb. South Korea’s weather agency says the apparent detonation set off a magnitude 5.7 earthquake, making the blast five to six times stronger than the North’s fifth test in September 2016.
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3:45 p.m.
North Korean TV says the country has successfully conducted a test of a hydrogen bomb that is meant to be loaded into an intercontinental ballistic missile.
The TV anchor announced the test’s success on Korean Central Television, hours after Seoul and Tokyo detected unusual seismic activity at North Korea’s nuclear test site. The announcer says North Korea’s leader Kim Jong Un ordered the test.
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3:30 p.m.
South Korea’s weather agency says an apparent nuclear test by North Korea appears to have been several times stronger than its previous test.
The Korea Meteorological Administration estimated Sunday that the nuclear blast yield of the presumed test was between 50 to 60 kilotons, or five to six times stronger than the North Korea’s fifth test in September 2016.
North Korea is believed to have conducted a test after a magnitude 5.7 earthquake was detected earlier Sunday. The previous test created seismic waves with a magnitude of 5.0.
Japan’s defense minister says the larger magnitude of the earthquake suggests “capability significantly exceeding the last one.”
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2:55 p.m.
North Korea’s state broadcaster says an important announcement is coming at 3 p.m. in Pyongyang. That would be 3:30 p.m. in Seoul and Tokyo, and 2:30 a.m. EDT.
KRT did not give any details of the announcement, but it comes after earthquake activity was detected earlier Sunday in what is presumed to have been a North Korean nuclear test.
The apparent test came hours after North Korea said its leader had inspected a hydrogen bomb meant for a new intercontinental ballistic missile. The report could not be independently verified.
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2:30 p.m.
South Korea has refuted a news report that there was a second earthquake near North Korea’s nuclear test site.
The Korea Meteorological Administration said Sunday that it had not detected another quake.
South Korea’s Yonhap news service reported a second earthquake had happened eight minutes after the first, citing China’s earthquake agency.
South Korea’s military said earlier Sunday that North Korea is believed to have conducted its sixth nuclear test after seismic waves were detected with a magnitude of 5.7. That was revised up from an initial report of 5.6.
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1:40 p.m.
South Korea’s Yonhap news agency says a second quake was detected near North Korea’s nuclear test site.
The second quake measured 4.6.
South Korea’s military said earlier Sunday that North Korea is believed to have conducted its sixth nuclear test after it picked up seismic waves measuring 5.6. The U.S. Geological Survey called the first quake an explosion with a magnitude 6.3.
It came hours after North Korea claimed that its leader has inspected a hydrogen bomb meant for a new intercontinental ballistic missile.
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1:30 p.m.
South Korea’s military says North Korea is believed to have conducted its sixth nuclear test.
The Joint Chiefs of Staff in Seoul says in a statement South Korea’s military has strengthened monitoring and readiness and is mulling a variety of possible responses that could be pushed together with its ally the U.S.
The apparent test came just hours after North Korea claimed that its leader has inspected the loading of a hydrogen bomb into a new intercontinental ballistic missile.
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1:05 p.m.
South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff says a magnitude 5.6 quake in North Korea was artificial and it’s analyzing whether the North conducted a nuclear test.
It says it detected a seismic wave from 12:34 p.m. to 12:36 p.m. around Punggyeri, North Korea.
The quake came just hours after North Korea claimed that its leader has inspected the loading of a hydrogen bomb into a new intercontinental ballistic missile.
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1 p.m.
South Korea’s Yonhap News agency says a magnitude 5.6 quake has occurred in North Korea.
It isn’t immediately clear whether North Korea has conducted its sixth nuclear test. North Korea conducted its fifth test last September.
The report came just hours after North Korea claimed that its leader has inspected the loading of a hydrogen bomb into a new intercontinental ballistic missile.