ARMAGEDDON
They will be met with fire and fury like the world has never seen.
THE EXPLOSIVE tensions between the United States and North Korea took an apocalyptic turn Tuesday as President Trump vowed to unleash “fire and fury like the world has never seen” if Pyongyang continues its threats against America.
The President’s harsh words came as a U.S. intelligence analysis reportedly determined North Korea has created a miniaturized nuclear warhead, crossing a red line for Trump.
The confidential report, compiled by the Defense Intelligence Agency, seems to confirm many military commanders’ worst fears about the speed with which North Korea is ramping up its efforts to procure new powers of mass destruction.
The Washington Post broke the news of the assessment hours after Pyongyang threatened “physical action” in response to sanctions unanimously approved by the United Nations over the weekend.
Trump then issued his own ultimatum — pledging that the world would witness unprecedented carnage if North Korea does not abate its menacing ways.
“North Korea best not make any more threats to the United States,” he said at an event at his New Jersey golf course, where he is vacationing. “They will be met with fire and fury like the world has never seen.”
Trump, his arms crossed in front of him, a stern look on his face, repeated his warning a second time.
“They will be met with the fire, fury and, frankly, power, the likes of which this world has never seen before.”
No specific actions were announced by the President or any other officials.
But his fierce words prompted a mixed response at home and more bombast from his foes across the Pacific.
A North Korean official said Pyongyang was “carefully examining” strikes near U.S. military installations in Guam, according to Yonhap news agency.
The official warned of “enveloping” the tiny U.S. territory in missile fire to counteract U.S. bombers that are based there and fly over South Korea — and “get on the nerves” of the North.
Threatening Guam is a common refrain, often made by North Korea during annual war games in the region conducted between South Korea and American forces.
The heightened rhetoric raised fears of miscommunications or inadvertent nuclear strikes.
“We need to be firm and deliberate with North Korea, but reckless rhetoric is not a strategy to keep America safe,” Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) said in a statement.
Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) appeared baffled by Trump’s war mongering.
“I don’t know what he’s saying and I’ve long ago given up trying to interpret what he says,” McCain said during an interview with a local Arizona radio station. “That kind of rhetoric, I’m not sure how it helps.”
The notion of an armed fray between the two countries is not far from many Americans’ minds, according to a CBS News poll released Tuesday morning.
The survey found that nearly three-quarters of those polled are nervous about the possibility of conflict with North Korea.
A much smaller number of people believe that the President has what it takes to lead the U.S. through such a conflict.
Only 35% of those polled are confident that Trump will be able to handle a serious military threat from the isolated nation.
The reclusive regime, which regularly threatens to destroy its neighbors, specifically Japan and South Korea, has conducted five underground nuclear bomb tests, the most recent in September 2016. The dictatorship sees nuclear-tipped missiles as the only surefire guarantee against invasion.
The Defense Intelligence Agency report, written in July and backed up by a similar Japanese assessment, claims that Pyongyang has produced a miniaturized nuclear warhead that can fit inside of one of the country’s missiles.
A separate analysis said the country could be holding up to 60 nuclear weapons, more than double the amount previously believed.
The report did not say if North Korea suc-
cessfully tested its mini-nuke, but the rogue nation claimed last year to have done so.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has a long history of bombastic threats about his country’s military powers.
But since Trump took office, Kim’s regime has beat its chest through a series of missile tests, military parades, and rumors of advancements exceeding experts’ expectations about how fast its nuclear arsenal could develop.
The communist country ran two intercontinental ballistic missile tests in July, the most powerful weapons yet that it has successfully launched.
U.S. analysts said the first missile could have hit Hawaii and Alaska, and the second may have had enough strength to reach the American Midwest.
Trump has taken to directly confronting North Korea with his own statements and calling on South Korea and China to thwart its threats — a dramatic break from past Presidents, who maintained a more removed policy of “strategic patience.”
In the past two months, the United States’ rebukes of Kim’s empire — and its cautions of stronger actions to come — have hit new heights.
United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley said in July the U.S. was prepared to use “considerable military forces” against North Korea if necessary.
National security adviser H.R. McMaster said last week Trump would consider a nucleararmed North Korea “intolerable,” and a “military option” might follow.
The U.S. announced a ban on travel to North Korea weeks after the country sent back Otto Warmbier, a University of Virginia student who was detained there for more than a year, in a coma. He died six days later.
The UN sanctions approved Saturday, in response to last month’s missile tests, could deprive Kim’s empire of more than $1 billion in lost trade.
North Korea on Monday vowed to launch “thousands-fold” revenge against the United States for the sanctions, and said America would “pay a price for its crime against our country and people.”
In another warning Tuesday, it said “physical action will be taken mercilessly with the mobilization of all its national strength.”