North Korea hydrogen-bomb claim questioned

North Korea announced on state television Wednesday that it had successfully detonated a “miniaturized” hydrogen bomb.
The announcement came hours after South Korean officials reported an artificial earthquake 30 miles north of Kilju, where North Korea’s primary nuclear test site is located.

 

The US Geological Survey measured the magnitude of the quake at 5.1, the same magnitude reported after North Korea’s most recent confirmed nuclear test, in February 2013.

 

Despite North Korea’s announcement, many geopolitical experts remained skeptical of the country’s claims of a successful hydrogen-bomb test, undoubtedly because of North Korean state media’s tendency to exaggerate or outright lie about happenings in the isolated nation.

 

RAND senior defense analyst Bruce Bennett wrote in an opinion piece for CNN that it was unlikely that North Korea had achieved a successful hydrogen fusion bomb considering that the country’s three previous nuclear tests appeared to show a difficulty in mastering a fission weapon.

 

Read More: North Korea hydrogen-bomb claim questioned – Business Insider