Source: Al Jazeera
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry has used strong words against North Korea after the country threatened to attack the United States. Carnegie's James Acton talks to Al Jazeera about the latest tensions between North Korea and the United States.
"We've heard yet another provocative announcement from North Korea. The irony is that this is not even the most provocative announcement to have come out of North Korea in the past few days," said Acton, adding, "threatening to build more nuclear weapons is actually not as provocative as threatening to use them against the United States, South Korea, or anyone else."
"But make no mistake," said Acton, "this is a dangerous and volatile situation on the Korean Peninsula; the South Korean government is worried, the United States government is worried, and they have good reasons to be." Acton said that he does not think that North Korea will use a nuclear weapon out of the blue, but rather that Pyongyang will commit another provocation.
"I don't think that North Korea wants a war," said Acton, "the question is whether it miscalculates, the question is whether it thinks it can get away with provoking South Korea via military force and assume that it will not be hit back.