American bombers menace North Korea
US BOMBERS yesterday flew further north of the Korean Demilitarised Zone than ever before this century, staging a show of force as North Korea’s foreign minister warned that the US was pushing his country closer towards retaliation.
Ri Yong-ho, speaking at the United Nations general assembly, described President Donald Trump as “an old gambler” who “has tried to turn the UN arena into a gangsters’ nest where money is respected and bloodshed the order of the day.
“He committed an irreversible mistake of making our rockets’ visit to the entire US mainland inevitable all the more,” said Mr Ri, refer- encing Mr Trump’s speech on Tuesday at the UN. The Pentagon defended yesterday’s sortie, describing it as a “demonstration of US resolve and a clear message” that Mr Trump “has many military options to defeat any threat”.
The sabre-rattling came as Iran – another of Mr Trump’s targets on Tuesday – said that it had successfully tested a missile capable of carrying multiple warheads.
Iranian state television said the Khorramshahr missile, which was displayed in a military parade on Friday, had a range of 1,200 miles – far enough to strike both Israel and Saudi Arabia. The test came as the world waits to see if Mr Trump will pull the US out of the 2015 nuclear deal with Iran, potentially pushing Iran towards conflict with the US and Israel.