The Pentagon late Thursday said North Korea does not have nuclear-armed missiles, playing down an intelligence report leaked earlier in the day which said Pyongyang had the capability to build atomic warheads that could be fitted on missiles.
Pentagon spokesman George Little says it would be inaccurate to suggest the North has fully tested, developed, or demonstrated the nuclear capability mentioned in the report.
Republican Congressman Doug Lamborn surprised Pentagon officials during a routine budget hearing Thursday by reading what he says was an unclassified paragraph from a U.S. military intelligence report. Lamborn said intelligence officials are moderately confident the North has nuclear weapons capable of delivery by ballistic missiles.
U.S. officials have been saying that they know little about North Korea’s intentions and have to assume the worst.
U.S. President Barack Obama says it is time for North Korea to end its “belligerent approach.”
The president said during White House talks with United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon Thursday that no one wants to see a war on the Korean peninsula. But Mr. Obama said the United States will take all necessary measures to protect itself and its allies.
U.S. and South Korean forces are on heightened alert for a possible North Korean missile test. South Korea’s Defense Ministry said Thursday it is fully prepared to deal with a North Korean launch.
