Jakarta, CNN Indonesia —
United States of America admitted to feeling threatened by the effort North Korea who continue to develop nuclear weapons and ballistic missile.
This was revealed by the United States Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin in a written statement to the US Senate Committee on Armed Services, Thursday (10/6).
“Pyongyang continues to develop its nuclear and ballistic missile programs, poses a serious threat to regional allies and partners, and with ambitions to attack the US homeland,” Austin said, citing Yonhap News Agency.
The US, said Austin, will prioritize diplomacy in dealing with threats from North Korea. However, they will rely on military might to support these efforts.
Austin said North Korea is one of the countries that poses a threat to the United States, in addition to China, Russia and Iran.
US Joint Chiefs of Staff Mark Milley added that North Korea poses a danger to the US, its allies and partners in the Indo-Pacific region.
“They are developing military capabilities at the expense of their own citizens and peace on the Korean Peninsula,” Milley said.
President Joe Biden previously said he would use “diplomatic and deterrence” to curb North Korea’s nuclear ambitions, with the hope of achieving complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula.
The US military says North Korea holds between 2,500 to 5,000 tonnes of chemical weapons of 20 different types. It is estimated that North Korea will use chemical weapons in artillery strikes.
There are an estimated 20 to 60 nuclear bombs in North Korea’s possession, with the ability to produce six each year
The US also said North Korea had succeeded in developing cyber warfare capabilities, which is one of the keys to a more aggressive diplomatic process.
They said the North’s cyber-combat unit dubbed the Bureau 121 reportedly managed more than 6,000 hackers. Most of them work from abroad, such as Belarus, China, India, Malaysia and Russia.
(isa/dea)
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