ocess, the concentrated nuclear weapons grade material can be moulded into a nuclear explosive using various means.

North Korea has been doing a yo-yo dance for the past 25 years on nuclear energy and nuclear weapons. Most if not all of the posturing has been to do between North Korea and the United states. Both of which are headstrong and not willing to back down on any stance or statement. Just like two schoolyard bullies, they keep raising the stakes, each one saying something, or doing something that causes the other to go one step higher. Now North Korea has gone to the final step and is over the slide - will they go down the slippery slide towards self-destruction due to their internal policies

Dateline: North Korea, October 9, 2006

Location: Hwadae-ri, North Korea - Depth Between 500-1000 meters

Very possible nuclear detonation

From all appearances, the Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea has detonated it's first functional nuclear weapon at approx 10:35am this morning.

The weapon's yield seems to be between 500-800 tonnes of tnt explosive force but could easily be as high as 15,000 tonnes. The DPRK has not confirmed the yield, only that the test was successful.

An underground explosion was recorded that is in line with nuclear effects on a seismology scale, so it definitely looks like the North Korean regime has done what it said it would do - detonate a working nuclear weapon.

This dramatically effects the balance of power in the region, and brings North Korea into the Nuclear Club, along with the United States, Russia, The United Kingdom, France, People's Republic of China, India, and Pakistan.

This Nuclear test has been unanimously condemned by the International community, with statements from far and wide including North Korea's staunchest ally, China "The DPRK ignored universal opposition of the international community and flagrantly conducted the nuclear test. The Chinese government is resolutely opposed to it."

However - in the overall scheme of things - what can the international community do? North Korea is already standing alone, receiving little if no real aid from outside it's borders due to it's isolationist stance. North Korea receives large amounts of Food from the international community, but this has begun to dwindle in the past few years due to the increasing military aggression from the ruling government.

With the nuclear test now complete, international aid agencies may withdraw further, leaving North Korea to struggle on it's own to feed 23 million people of which over 6 million are already malnourished and well below the poverty level.

North Korea Nuclear History North Korea has had a multi-coloured nuclear history, starting with the Yongbyon Nuclear Reactor coming online in 1965 initially supplied by Soviet nuclear parts. During the next 25 years the reactor was upgraded and developed both with Soviet and internal Korean help to it's current configuration. The main reactor is a Magnox 8mw reactor producing nuclear material at a steady rate.

The Magnox process used Magnesium-alloy clad uranium fuel rods that are used in the nuclear power station to provide thermal energy to be turned into electricity through high-speed steam turbines. Once the main body of uranium has been exhausted, the rods are removed and replaced with fresh fuel. The spent rods now have both large concentrations of U-238 and Plutonium in them.

After a chemical and centrifuge purification process, the concentrated nuclear weapons grade material can be moulded into a nuclear explosive using various means.

North Korea has been doing a yo-yo dance for the past 25 years on nuclear energy and nuclear weapons. Most if not all of the posturing has been to do between North Korea and the United states. Both of which are headstrong and not willing to back down on any stance or statement. Just like two schoolyard bullies, they keep raising the stakes, each one saying something, or doing something that causes the other to go one step higher. Now North Korea has gone to the final step and is over the slide - will they go down the slippery slide towards self-destruction due to their internal policies

it would do - detonate a working nuclear weapon.

This dramatically effects the balance of power in the region, and brings North Korea into the Nuclear Club, along with the United States, Russia, The United Kingdom, France, People's Republic of China, India, and Pakistan.

This Nuclear test has been unanimously condemned by the International community, with statements from far and wide including North Korea's staunchest ally, China "The DPRK ignored universal opposition of the international community and flagrantly conducted the nuclear test. The Chinese government is resolutely opposed to it."

However - in the overall scheme of things - what can the international community do? North Korea is already standing alone, receiving little if no real aid from outside it's borders due to it's isolationist stance. North Korea receives large amounts of Food from the international community, but this has begun to dwindle in the past few years due to the increasing military aggression from the ruling government.

With the nuclear test now complete, international aid agencies may withdraw further, leaving North Korea to struggle on it's own to feed 23 million people of which over 6 million are already malnourished and well below the poverty level.

North Korea Nuclear History North Korea has had a multi-coloured nuclear history, starting with the Yongbyon Nuclear Reactor coming online in 1965 initially supplied by Soviet nuclear parts. During the next 25 years the reactor was upgraded and developed both with Soviet and internal Korean help to it's current configuration. The main reactor is a Magnox 8mw reactor producing nuclear material at a steady rate.

The Magnox process used Magnesium-alloy clad uranium fuel rods that are used in the nuclear power station to provide thermal energy to be turned into electricity through high-speed steam turbines. Once the main body of uranium has been exhausted, the rods are removed and replaced with fresh fuel. The spent rods now have both large concentrations of U-238 and Plutonium in them.

After a chemical and centrifuge purification process, the concentrated nuclear weapons grade material can be moulded into a nuclear explosive using various means.

North Korea has been doing a yo-yo dance for the past 25 years on nuclear energy and nuclear weapons. Most if not all of the posturing has been to do between North Korea and the United states. Both of which are headstrong and not willing to back down on any stance or statement. Just like two schoolyard bullies, they keep raising the stakes, each one saying something, or doing something that causes the other to go one step higher. Now North Korea has gone to the final step and is over the slide - will they go down the slippery slide towards self-destruction due to their internal policies

is already standing alone, receiving little if no real aid from outside it's borders due to it's isolationist stance. North Korea receives large amounts of Food from the international community, but this has begun to dwindle in the past few years due to the increasing military aggression from the ruling government.

With the nuclear test now complete, international aid agencies may withdraw further, leaving North Korea to struggle on it's own to feed 23 million people of which over 6 million are already malnourished and well below the poverty level.

North Korea Nuclear History North Korea has had a multi-coloured nuclear history, starting with the Yongbyon Nuclear Reactor coming online in 1965 initially supplied by Soviet nuclear parts. During the next 25 years the reactor was upgraded and developed both with Soviet and internal Korean help to it's current configuration. The main reactor is a Magnox 8mw reactor producing nuclear material at a steady rate.

The Magnox process used Magnesium-alloy clad uranium fuel rods that are used in the nuclear power station to provide thermal energy to be turned into electricity through high-speed steam turbines. Once the main body of uranium has been exhausted, the rods are removed and replaced with fresh fuel. The spent rods now have both large concentrations of U-238 and Plutonium in them.

After a chemical and centrifuge purification process, the concentrated nuclear weapons grade material can be moulded into a nuclear explosive using various means.

North Korea has been doing a yo-yo dance for the past 25 years on nuclear energy and nuclear weapons. Most if not all of the posturing has been to do between North Korea and the United states. Both of which are headstrong and not willing to back down on any stance or statement. Just like two schoolyard bullies, they keep raising the stakes, each one saying something, or doing something that causes the other to go one step higher. Now North Korea has gone to the final step and is over the slide - will they go down the slippery slide towards self-destruction due to their internal policies

e in 1965 initially supplied by Soviet nuclear parts. During the next 25 years the reactor was upgraded and developed both with Soviet and internal Korean help to it's current configuration. The main reactor is a Magnox 8mw reactor producing nuclear material at a steady rate.

The Magnox process used Magnesium-alloy clad uranium fuel rods that are used in the nuclear power station to provide thermal energy to be turned into electricity through high-speed steam turbines. Once the main body of uranium has been exhausted, the rods are removed and replaced with fresh fuel. The spent rods now have both large concentrations of U-238 and Plutonium in them.

After a chemical and centrifuge purification process, the concentrated nuclear weapons grade material can be moulded into a nuclear explosive using various means.

North Korea has been doing a yo-yo dance for the past 25 years on nuclear energy and nuclear weapons. Most if not all of the posturing has been to do between North Korea and the United states. Both of which are headstrong and not willing to back down on any stance or statement. Just like two schoolyard bullies, they keep raising the stakes, each one saying something, or doing something that causes the other to go one step higher. Now North Korea has gone to the final step and is over the slide - will they go down the slippery slide towards self-destruction due to their internal policies

ocess, the concentrated nuclear weapons grade material can be moulded into a nuclear explosive using various means.

North Korea has been doing a yo-yo dance for the past 25 years on nuclear energy and nuclear weapons. Most if not all of the posturing has been to do between North Korea and the United states. Both of which are headstrong and not willing to back down on any stance or statement. Just like two schoolyard bullies, they keep raising the stakes, each one saying something, or doing something that causes the other to go one step higher. Now North Korea has gone to the final step and is over the slide - will they go down the slippery slide towards self-destruction due to their internal policies or will they now begin to back down from the rhetoric having proven they can do what they said they can do?

Only time will tell. The thing to remember here is the United States' current government is not being very receptive to the needs of the countries that are not in agreement with it's own policies, and as such, if anybody tries to stand up to the might of America, the US tends to get all overtly defensive and aggressive. Asian nations have a very high concept of personal honor, with the US administration continuing to insult the DPRK and it's administration, no bridges will be built, only more burning of them and possibly the villages behind the bridges also.

The only way friendship will happen in this volatile nation will be for both sides to relax and begin to talk on a level playing field. Not with the US saying we'll offer you a pittance if you drop all that. Or North Korea saying we demand you give us this before we will do that. Both sides have to sit down and make concrete offers and then stick to them - otherwise we will have a state of possibly Nuclear Terrorism where North Korea may be cornered into using it's nuclear stockpile to force concessions or supplies from other countries to keep itself going. The world does not need to go there.