Tensions Rise As North Korea Mocks The Death Of U.S. Sailors, Threatens New Missile Tests

The war of words between the U.S. and North Korea leaves many fearing that World War 3 is just around the corner. North Korean President Kim Jong-un shows no sign of ceding to international pressure, and as reported by the Inquisitr earlier this week, U.S. President Donald Trump has indicated that the time for talking is over. Neither side in the North Korean crisis seems willing to give any ground, making the possibility of World War 3 beginning on the Korean peninsula a very real possibility.

As reported by the Daily Express, French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian warned today that the North Korean situation is “explosive” and said that something must be done to stop Kim Jong-un. North Korea continues to build and test intercontinental missiles that would be capable of delivering a nuclear warhead to the U.S. mainland and to many parts of continental Europe.

“The situation is extremely serious… we see North Korea setting itself as an objective to have, tomorrow or the day after, missiles that can transport nuclear weapons.

“In a few months that will be a reality.”

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and British Prime Minister Theresa May provided a united voice yesterday when they warned that North Korea’s missile tests now mean that the rogue state “has become a global threat.”

According to NDTV Russian President Vladimir Putin said today that the war of words between the U.S. and North Korea has brought the world to the brink of “large-scale conflict.” President Putin criticized both the U.S. and North Korea when he said that a settlement can only be reached through dialogue and that placing preconditions on talks is “erroneous and futile.”

“It is essential to resolve the region’s problems through direct dialogue involving all sides without advancing any preconditions [for such talks].

“Provocations, pressure, and bellicose and offensive rhetoric is the road to nowhere.”

When it comes to “bellicose and offensive rhetoric,” it seems that North Korea is not listening. Newsweek reports that North Korean media outlets have been mocking the deaths of 17 U.S. sailors who died after the collisions involving the USS John S. McCain and USS Fitzgerald. Both U.S. Navy ships were in collision with oil tankers in the seas off Japan. Seven U.S. Navy personnel died on the USS Fitzgerald, and 10 died on the USS John S. McCain.

North Korean media also claimed that Kim Jong-un will test a further four intercontinental missiles by firing them into the sea off the coast of Guam, a U.S. territory. The latest saber rattling from North Korea comes in the wake of a demonstration of military might by the U.S., South Korea, and Japan, who carried out airborne maneuvers near the North Korean border earlier this week.

It seems that the latest attempts by both Russia and China to curb the behavior of North Korea have fallen on deaf ears in Pyongyang, and with Donald Trump suggesting that talking to North Korea “is not the answer,” it’s hard to see a resolution of the conflict.

Vladimir Putin will be attending a summit in Xiamen, China, next week. With neither President Trump nor Kim Jong-un willing to take a backward step, the prospects of a nuclear World War 3 are just too horrible to contemplate.

[Featured Image by South Korea Defense Ministry/AP Images]