It appears that Kim Jong Il has decided to set off one of his small nuclear bombs. Small, in nuke terms, means it’s no bigger than the bomb we used to completely annihilate Nagasaki in 1945.
Naturally, the White House said the test defied world opinion. Hello pot, have you met kettle?
The ROK said the bomb was 550 tons (in TNT equivalence), while Russia said it was at least 5000 tons and possibly 15000. There’s a range of guessing, eh?
The PRC has condemned the test, which is surprising considering that China is North Korea’s only ally. The South Koreans were going to send 4000 tons of cement across the DMZ on Tuesday to help with their flood relief efforts; it’s been “delayed” now.
Any bets on how many North Koreans will starve this winter?