US closer to nuclear war than ever with North Korea, US military officer warns

A FORMER top US military officer has revealed why he believes America is on the brink of war with North Korea — and there’s no diplomatic solution in sight.

THE United States is now closer than it has ever been to a nuclear war with North Korea, a former top US military officer has warned, saying he saw little prospect of a diplomatic solution.

Mike Mullen, a former chairman of the US joint chiefs of staff, attributed the rising danger to Donald Trump’s “incredibly disruptive” presidency.

“And in my view, an incredibly dangerous climate exists out there in that uncertainty with how this all ends up,” he said on ABC’s This Week.

“One in particular that is top of the list is North Korea.” “We’re actually closer, in my view, to a nuclear war with North Korea and in that region than we have ever been,” he said, adding, “I don’t see the opportunities to solve this diplomatically at this particular point.” Mullen, who served as the top US military adviser to both presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama, questioned whether Trump can be constrained by US Defense Secretary Jim Mattis, National Security Adviser H.R. McMaster or White House chief of staff John Kelly.

“Will he follow through on his rhetoric? Or will we actually be able to get to a situation where it could be solved peacefully?” Mullen asked.

Former Joint Chiefs head Adm. Mike Mullen to @ThisWeekABC: U.S. closer to "nuclear war with North Korea" than ever before. https://t.co/9oQXWwbzap pic.twitter.com/ZonvLmjFVo

— This Week (@ThisWeekABC) December 31, 2017

The Pukguksong-2 is launched at an undisclosed location in North Korea. Picture: Korea News Service via AP

“I’m just more inclined to see over time that the rhetoric seems to be where the president is, and that will limit the constraining ability that both Jim Mattis and H.R. McMaster and John Kelly have,” he said.

Trump warned in a speech to the UN General Assembly in September that the United States “will have no choice but to totally destroy North Korea” if forced to defend itself or its allies.

In August, he vowed to unleash “fire and fury” on North Korea if it continued to threaten the United States or its allies.

Pyongyang conducted its sixth nuclear test September 3 and, despite escalating sanctions, on Nov. 28 it test-launched an intercontinental missile capable of striking the United States.

Republican Senator Lindsey Graham, who warned Sunday of a sharp increase in the risk of pre-emptive attack if North Korea conducts any more tests, said Trump had decided early on to deny North Korea the capability to strike the United States with a nuclear-tipped missile.

“2018 will be a year of opportunity and extreme danger,” Graham said on CBS’s “Face the Nation.” “Now, the Iranians are watching the way he engages with North Korea, and vice versa. So we’ve got a chance here to deliver some fatal blows to really bad actors in 2018. But if we blink, God help us all.”

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, right, celebrates what was said to be the test launch of an intermediate range Hwasong-12 missile at an undisclosed location. Picture: AP

S KOREA SEIZES OIL TANKER

South Korean authorities have seized a Panama-flagged oil tanker suspected of evading international sanctions by trading with North Korea.

An official from South Korea’s Foreign Ministry said the 5,100-ton KOTI and its crew members were being held at Pyeongtaek-Dangjin port on the country’s west coast amid an inspection over supposed “North Korea-related” activity. The official didn’t elaborate on the specifics of the activities or when and where they allegedly took place. She spoke on condition of anonymity, citing office rules.

An official from the Pyeongtaek Regional Office of Oceans and Fisheries, who also requested anonymity, confirmed that the vessel had been disallowed from leaving the port since Dec. 21.

The Lighthouse Winmore, chartered by Taiwanese company Billions Bunker Group Corp., is seen at sea off South Korea's Yeosu port. Picture: AFP

The revelation comes days after South Korea said it was holding a Hong Kong- flagged ship and crew members over transferring petroleum products to a North Korean vessel in international waters in October. The Lighthouse Winmore is believed to have transferred about 600 tons of refined petroleum products to the North Korean ship in international waters in the East China Sea, according to the Foreign Ministry.

Ship-to-ship trade with North Korea at sea is prohibited under U.N. sanctions adopted Sept. 11.

The Russian Foreign Ministry is rejecting claims that Moscow has breached U.N. sanctions against North Korea.

The ministry said in a statement carried Saturday by the state RIA Novosti news agency that Russia has “fully and strictly observed the sanctions regime.”

UN SANCTIONS HIT KIM’S SUPPLIES

North Korea has come under heavy sanctions imposed by the U.N. Security Council as it has accelerated efforts to expand its nuclear weapons and ballistic missile program.

The UN Security Council has imposed three sets of sanctions on the North this year to try to halt its nuclear and ballistic missile tests.

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un attending an art performance. Picture: KCNA/AFP

One on August 5 targeted the iron, coal and fishing industries, another set on September 11 was aimed at textiles and restricting oil supplies, and the most recent on December 22 focused on refined petroleum products.

In recent months, North Korea conducted its most powerful nuclear test to date and flight-tested intercontinental ballistic missiles three times, raising concerns that it’s closer than ever to gaining a military arsenal that can viably target the mainland United States.

N KOREA’S ULTIMATUM TO US

North Korea said Saturday that it will never give up its nuclear weapons as long as the United States and its allies continue their “blackmail and war drills” at its doorstep.

The North’s official Korean Central News Agency took the oft-repeated stance as it reviewed the country’s major nuclear weapons and missile tests this year. North Korea conducted its most powerful nuclear test to date in September and launched three intercontinental ballistic missiles into the sea in July and November, indicating that it is closer than ever to gaining a nuclear arsenal that could viably target the mainland United States.

A South Korean army soldier stands guard at a military guard post in Paju, South Korea, near the border with North Korea. Picture: AP

The aggressive tests have led to more international sanctions and pressure on North Korea amid concerns that the window for stopping or rolling back its nuclear program is closing rapidly. The U.S. and South Korea have maintained that they won’t negotiate with the North unless it is willing to discuss curbing its nuclear weapons and missile program.

In its report Saturday, KCNA said North Korea had taken steps for “bolstering the capabilities for self-defence and pre-emptive attacks with nuclear force” in the face of a continued “nuclear threat and blackmail and war drills” by the United States and its “vassal forces.” The North often lashes out at the annual military drills between the United States and South Korea, which the allies describe as defensive in nature. KCNA accused President Donald Trump of employing unprecedented hostile policies against North Korea and threatening it with talks of pre-emptive strikes.