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'WE’LL FIRE A SALVO OF MISSILES'

Kim Jong-un claims he has his ‘finger on the trigger’ as North Koreans are warned to prepare for US invasion

TRIGGER-happy North Korea has made renewed threats to obliterate the US territory of Guam with a salvo of missiles over fears the country is facing a military invasion.

Potty Kim Jong-un warned this week's America's joint air and sea exercises with Japan and South Korea have hardened his beliefs that the US and its allies "should be tamed with fire."

 Kim claims the US are pushing him into a world war
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Kim claims the US are pushing him into a world warCredit: Reuters

In a statement published through its state media, Pyongyang said the military drills "lets us take our hand closer to the 'trigger' for taking the toughest countermeasure".

The words are a direct response to two US Air Force supersonic heavy bombers being flown over the Korean peninsula in a show of force and separate sea manoeuvres involving the US and Japanese navies.

Two B-1B Lancers based in Guam flew a mission in the vicinity of the Sea of Japan, staging the first night-time joint aviation exercises with Japan and South Korea the US Pacific Air Forces.

North Korea has threatened to fire a salvo of intermediate range missiles toward the US Pacific island territory.

 Guam is just over 2,000 miles from North Korea's missiles
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Guam is just over 2,000 miles from North Korea's missiles
 Japanese soldiers during an exercise on the US Naval Base Guam earlier this year
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Japanese soldiers during an exercise on the US Naval Base Guam earlier this yearCredit: AP:Associated Press
 Donald Trump has warned North Korea it faces 'fire and fury' if it threatens the US
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Donald Trump has warned North Korea it faces 'fire and fury' if it threatens the USCredit: AP:Associated Press

It is situated around 1,500 miles to the west of the Philippines and just over 2,000 miles from North Korea.

Crucially, the island is also a strategic US military outpost and more than 6,000 US service personnel.

American military bases occupy nearly 30 per cent of Guam's land, including the Andersen Air Force - home to a host of nuclear bombers - and the Naval Base Guam.

Yesterday, White House Chief of Staff John Kelly said there's "great concern" about Americans who live on the island.

 The US flew two bomber jets over the Korean peninsula in a 'show of force'
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The US flew two bomber jets over the Korean peninsula in a 'show of force'Credit: Reuters
 The impressive USS Ronald Reagan (right) with the USNS John Ericsson
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The impressive USS Ronald Reagan (right) with the USNS John EricssonCredit: Reuters

Speaking at a White House news conference he said: "Right now we think the threat is manageable " but added the situation would become more problematic over time if North Korea's capability "grows beyond where it is today."

State propaganda in the hermit country also warned citizens to prepare for an allied invasion - focusing its anger on nearby Japan.

The North Korea mouthpiece claims Japan is attempting a “reinvasion of the Asia-Pacific region”.

It states: “The real intention of Japan, which plays up the DPRK’s (Democratic People’s Republic of Korea) ‘threat’ and clamours for a ‘preemptive strike’ against the latter, has fully been revealed already. Such reckless acts will put Japan in jeopardy.

“The DPRK’s toughest counteractions include a warning not only to the US, which gravely threatens the former’s rights to sovereignty and existence, but also to Japan which acts rashly, toeing the US line, without knowing what would happen to itself.

“Japan had better consider the DPRK’s warning carefully.”

Two key officials involved in North Korea’s nuclear and missile program were reportedly nowhere to be seen during public events this week, fuelling speculation that another missile launch is imminent.

Ri Man-gon, supervisor for the nuclear missile development, and Kim Rak-gyom, the head of the strategic rocket forces, were noticeably missing at a  mass rally in Pyongyang and a celebration for the anniversary of the Worker’s Party of Korea

North Korea could wipe out four million people within MINUTES of launching a nuclear strike, shock research has found.

A new report says Kim Jong-un's deadly nuke arsenal has the ability to wreak apocalyptic havoc on neighbours South Korea and Japan.

The analysis by North Korea monitoring group assessed potential scenarios that could play out if war-hungry Kim acts on his threats to destroy his Western enemies.

A worst case situation is based on the assumption that Kim has amassed 25 nukes with a strength of 15 kilotons, the same as the Hiroshima bomb dropped by the United States at the end of WW2.

 North Korean leader Kim Jong-un could wipe out millions within minutes of launching a nuclear strike
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North Korean leader Kim Jong-un could wipe out millions within minutes of launching a nuclear strikeCredit: Reuters
 Kim has been carrying out several missile and nuke tests over recent months
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Kim has been carrying out several missile and nuke tests over recent monthsCredit: Reuters
 South Korea has also been upping its ballistic missile capabilities in response to North Korea's threats
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South Korea has also been upping its ballistic missile capabilities in response to North Korea's threatsCredit: AP:Associated Press

If just a few of these made it through defences to detonate over Seoul or Tokyo, the potential devastation would be catastrophic.

"Multiple nuclear weapon detonations on both Seoul and Tokyo based on the current North Korea yield estimates could result in anywhere from 400,000 to 2 million deaths", the report's author Michael J. Zagurek Jr. wrote.

“With possible thermonuclear yields with the same number of weapons, the number of deaths could range between 1.3 and 3.8 million", he added.

This could lead to millions of people dying within minutes of the initial blast.




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