Day: March 28, 2023

South Korea (Tribune News Service) — Kim Jong Un said North Korea is ready to use nuclear weapons “anytime and anywhere,” delivering a new threat as a U.S. aircraft carrier group arrives in South Korea.

Kim made the comments while visiting a facility producing nuclear bombs, the official Korean Central News Agency reported Tuesday. State media released images of Kim standing with military officials among his arsenal of warheads.

Kim reiterated his call to exponentially increase North Korea’s nuclear arsenal, which “is aimed to defend the eternal security of the state and the regional peace and stability from A to Z.” The visit to the facility came as North Korea has rolled out new weapons to deliver nuclear strikes in recent weeks and pledged an unprecedented response to joint military drills between the United States and South Korea.

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The terror threat level in Northern Ireland has increased from “substantial” to “severe” meaning an attack is highly likely, the government has said.

Northern Ireland Secretary Chris Heaton-Harris told the House of Commons that the decision was made by MI5, independent of ministers.

He cited a “small number” of individuals who remain determined to use “politically motivated violence” – pointing to the attempted murder of DCI Caldwell.

In a written ministerial statement he said: “MI5 has increased the threat to Northern Ireland from Northern Ireland Related Terrorism from ‘SUBSTANTIAL’ (an attack is likely) to ‘SEVERE’ (an attack is highly likely).

“The public should remain vigilant, but not be alarmed, and continue to report any concerns they have to the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI).”

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Germany has faced criticism during the war for an apparent reluctance to send heavy weaponry to Ukraine. It eventually decided to send battle tanks to Kyiv in January, with the U.S. also pledging to send tanks. The U.K. was the first country to pledge tanks to Ukraine early on in the new year.

In other news, Russia’s Pacific Fleet fired supersonic anti-ship cruise missiles at a mock target in the Sea of Japan, the Russian Defense Ministry said Tuesday. The combat exercise saw Russia fire Moskit cruise missiles — supersonic anti-ship cruise missiles — at a “mock enemy.” It said the target was hit.

Japan’s foreign minister said his country would remain vigilant against Moscow’s military operations.

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Ukraine’s main task in the eastern city of Bakhmut is to “deplete the enemy’s overwhelming forces and inflict heavy losses on it,” the commander of the Ukrainian Land Forces said Tuesday.

“We are now at a time when the enemy, trying to capture Bakhmut, has thrown all its best units in to achieve victory,” Col. Gen. Oleksandr Syrskyi said in a video posted on Telegram, which shows him standing alongside troops during a visit to the area.

“Our task is to destroy as many enemies as possible and create the conditions for us to launch an offensive. Therefore, you need to put an end to those enemy units that are in front of you. You have already proven that you can do this,” he said.

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