North Korea

We appear to have returned to the usual state of tension between Washington and Moscow, following a period when we could not be sure of how relations would develop given US President Donald Trump's unclear declarations both during his election campaign and after he won.

North Korea is ready to launch a nuclear test at its Punggye-ri Nuclear Test Site, the 38 North monitoring group reported on Wednesday.

The 38 North analysis group described the test site as “primed and ready.”

North Korea warned the United States that it would respond to “reckless acts of aggression” after a carrier battle group led by the 97,000-ton USS Carl Vinson was deployed to the Korean peninsula. The aircraft carrier is being escorted by a guided-missile cruiser and two destroyers equipped with Aegis technology capable of shooting down any future North Korean test missiles.

Chinese leader Xi Jinping has urged U.S. President Donald Trump to peacefully resolve tensions over North Korea's nuclear program, as the U.S. president touted the power of a naval "armada" steaming towards the Korean peninsula.

Trade will be at the forefront of many leaders’ minds this quarter as a new U.S. administration settles into the White House. Though U.S. President Donald Trump continues to be bogged down by congressional battles and allegations of inappropriate ties to Russia, his team will try to draw the public’s attention back to its trade agenda.

North Korea denounced the U.S. deployment of a naval strike group to the region on April 11, warning it is ready for "war" as Washington tightens the screws on the nuclear-armed state.

The strike group - which includes the Nimitz-class aircraft supercarrier USS Carl Vinson - cancelled a planned trip to Australia this weekend to head to the Korean peninsula in a show of force.  

AFP PHOTO / KCNA via KNS

The North Korean Foreign Ministry believes that US decision to send an aircraft carrier strike group to the shores of the Korean Peninsula proves the aggressive intentions of Washington, and Pyongyang is ready to take countermeasures in case of military action, local media reported Tuesday, citing a ministry's official.

A U.S. Navy strike group will be moving toward the western Pacific Ocean near the Korean peninsula as a show of force, a U.S. official told Reuters on Saturday, as concerns grow about North Korea's advancing weapons program.

Foreign ministers from the Group of Seven major industrialized nations meet on Monday for an annual gathering, with Europe and Japan seeking clarity from the United States on an array of issues, especially Syria, Reuters reports.

The U.S. Navy said on April 8 that it had sent a carrier-led strike group to the Korean peninsula in a show of force against North Korea's "reckless" nuclear weapons program.