Danger! Prepare to launch the Nuke at any time - North Korean leader primes his generals for a nuclear attack

Danger! Prepare to launch the Nuke at any time - North Korean leader primes his generals for a nuclear attack

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has ordered nuclear weapons to be readied for use, South Korea's Yonhap News Agency reported Thursday, citing the official North Korean state news agency.

The shift in military posture would allow North Korea to carry out pre-emptive attacks, North Korea's Central News Agency said.

The move follows the U.N. Security Council's unanimous approval Wednesday of tough new sanctions against North Korea in response to its recent nuclear and missile tests. The resolution contains the toughest set of sanctions imposed by the Security Council in more than two decades, Secretary of State John Kerry said.

The sanctions require North Korean cargo ships and aircraft to be inspected before entering and after leaving the reclusive country. They would also prohibit small arms and other conventional weapons sales to North Korea.

Just hours after the Security Council resolution passed, North Korea fired several short-range projectiles into the sea, according to the South Korean defense ministry.

The extent of North Korea's nuclear arsenal is unknown. The nation claimed in January that it had successfully detonated a hydrogen bomb at a test site, but third-party experts and U.S. leaders expressed doubts.

White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest said at the time that initial analysis by U.S. intelligence agencies was “not consistent with North Korean claims of a successful hydrogen bomb test.” Seismic activity was consistent with some kind of atomic detonation, however.

The United States is building a network of ground-based missile interceptors designed to counter a threat from countries such as North Korea. The Pentagon said it is on track to have 44 such interceptors ready by the end of next year. Some are already on line.

-US Today