North Korea quake was a nuclear test, says UN official

An international nuclear test monitoring agency said on Tuesday that it had detected an “unusual seismic event” in North Korea, following weeks of speculation that a nuclear test was imminent in the country. However Reuters has reported a UNSC diplomat confirming that the quake was a result of a nuclear test in North Korea. “We have detected an unusual seismic event in North Korea,” said Annika Thunborg, a spokeswoman for the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test Ban Treaty Organisation, an agency set up to monitor compliance with a ban on nuclear tests that has yet to come into effect. She gave no further details. Meanwhile, South Korea’s Yonhap news agency reported that North Korea informed Beijing and Washington of its plans to undertake a nuclear test. Yonhap, citing an unnamed South Korean official, said the warning had been given on Monday to both capitals. “There is a high possibility that North Korea has conducted a nuclear test,” said Chi Heoncheol, an earthquake specialist at the institute. Chi said a magnitude 3.9 magnitude earthquake and a magnitude 4.5 earthquake were detected in the North’s 2006 and 2009 nuclear tests. The United States and its allies have been on edge since North Korea said last month it will conduct its third nuclear test to protest toughened sanctions over a December rocket launch that the UN called a cover for a banned missile test. [caption id=“attachment_621811” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  A South Korean passenger watches TV news reporting an earthquake in North Korea, at the Seoul train station in Seoul. AP[/caption] North Korea’s powerful politburo vowed to continue firing “powerful long-range rockets,” but a statement by state media Tuesday made no mention of a nuclear test. North Korea’s powerful National Defense Commission said 23 Jan that the United States was its prime target for a nuclear test and long-range rocket launches. North Korea accuses Washington of leading the push to punish Pyongyang for its December rocket launch. Last October, a spokesman from the commission told state media that the country had built a missile capable of striking the United States, but did not provide further details. A missile featured in an April 2012 military parade appeared to be an intercontinental ballistic missile, but its authenticity has not been verified by foreign experts. Agencies