North Korea Saturday sought to justify its weapons programme as a defence against US nuclear “blackmail” as world powers debated ways to punish Pyongyang for its fifth and most powerful atomic test.

South Korea said the nuclear threat from its wayward neighbour was growing fast and called for tough new sanctions from the UN Security Council to force it to change tack.

The yield from Friday’s test, which sparked international shockwaves, was estimated at 10 kilotons – almost twice as much as the one Pyongyang conducted only eight months ago.

The North also boasted that the test was of a nuclear warhead that could be mounted on a missile.

“It is believed that the North’s nuclear capability is becoming more advanced to a considerable level, and at a faster pace,” Foreign Minister Yun Byung-Se told senior ministry officials, calling for “more and stronger sanctions”.

The UN Security Council agreed to start work on just that – even though five sets of UN sanctions since the first nuclear test a decade ago have failed to halt the North’s drive for what it insists are defensive weapons.

During a closed-door meeting Friday, the council strongly condemned the test and agreed to begin drafting a new resolution under Article 41 of the UN charter, which provides for sanctions.

“The members of the Security Council will begin to work immediately on appropriate measures under Article 41 in a Security Council resolution,” New Zealand’s ambassador Gerard van Bohemen, who holds the council’s rotating presidency, told reporters.

South Korea, the United States, Japan, Russia and China all condemned the blast at the Punggye-ri nuclear site.

In Seoul, dozens of protesters burned an effigy of the North’s leader Kim Jong-Un and called for “strong retaliation”, including pre-emptive attacks on the North’s nuclear complex.

“Eliminate Kim Jong-Un!” and “Destroy North Korea’s nuclear weapons!” the elderly activists shouted.

Some newspapers were equally scathing. “South Korea left unguarded before nuclear maniac,” read the banner headline of the top-selling Chosun Ilbo.

But the North’s ruling party newspaper vowed Saturday not to submit to US nuclear “blackmail”, and described the South’s President Park Geun-Hye as a “dirty prostitute” for working with US forces.

“Gone are the days never to return when the US could make a unilateral nuclear blackmail against the DPRK,” said Rodong Sinmun, using the country’s official name.

“The US is exasperated by the strong military steps being taken by the DPRK in a phased way.” The US stations 28,500 troops in the South. The Joongang Ilbo newspaper recommended they should be armed with tactical nuclear weapons, as they were until the early 1990s.

The Security Council met at the request of Japan, South Korea and the United States to agree on a response, despite resistance from Pyongyang’s sole ally China to calls for tougher measures.

After Pyongyang carried out its fourth nuclear test, the council in March adopted the toughest sanctions resolution to date, targeting North Korea’s trade in minerals and tightening banking restrictions.

But since that measure was adopted, North Korea has carried out 21 ballistic missile launches, US ambassador Samantha Power said.

“North Korea is seeking to perfect its nuclear weapons and their delivery vehicles so they can hold the region and the world hostage under threat of nuclear strike,” Power said.

Pyongyang’s state media said Friday the nuclear test had realised the goal of being able to fit a miniaturised warhead on a rocket.

“Our nuclear scientists staged a nuclear explosion test on a newly developed nuclear warhead at the country’s northern nuclear test site,” a TV presenter said.

North Koreans gathered around public screens to watch the official announcement of the test.

The nuclear programme has accompanied a series of ballistic missile launches, the latest of which took place on Monday as world powers gathered for a G20 meeting in China.

China has long been under pressure to rein in its increasingly aggressive neighbour.

Beijing strongly condemned the test. But its priority is to avoid the regime’s collapse, which would create a crisis on its border and potentially shift the balance of power on the Korean peninsula toward the United States.

US Defence Secretary Ashton Carter called for further pressure on North Korea, but said China bore responsibility for tackling the problem.

“China shares important responsibility for this development and has an important responsibility to reverse it,” he said.

“It’s important that it use its location, its history and its influence to further the denuclearisation of the Korean peninsula and not the direction things have been going.”

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte, saying he was “not a fan” of the United States, vowed Saturday to steer an independent course for the key Asian ally and refrain from confronting territorial rival China.

The incendiary leader made the comments after a controversial first foreign trip and spectacular falling out with US President Barack Obama, who he called a “son of a whore”.

“I am not a fan of the Americans… Filipinos should be first before everybody else,” Duterte told reporters upon arrival in his hometown of Davao city Saturday.

“In our relations to the world, the Philippines will pursue an independent foreign policy. I repeat: The Philippines will pursue an independent foreign policy.”

The president’s trip to a summit in Laos was overshadowed by his verbal tirade, which saw Obama cancel a planned meeting. The pair met briefly later after Duterte expressed regret.

The US, Manila’s main military ally and the Philippines’ colonial ruler until 1946, has criticised Duterte’s brutal crackdown on crime, which has claimed 3,000 lives since he took office in July and drawn condemnation from the United Nations.

Read also: Boxer Manny Pacquiao backs Philippines President Duterte over bust-up with Obama

Obama has urged the Filipino leader to conduct his crime war “the right way” and protect human rights, but Duterte has dismissed it as being none of America’s business.

The two also subtly differed on how to proceed after a UN-backed international tribunal in July outlawed most of China’s claims to the strategic South China Sea, including areas that overlap with those of the Philippines and other neighbours.

Obama, whose government wants to ensure freedom of navigation in the waterway, brought up the contentious issue at the Laos forum also attended by China.

He stressed that the tribunal’s ruling was “binding” and could not be ignored by Beijing, which has rejected it.

Anti-crime blitz sweeps Philippines as Duterte comes into power

Click on thumbnail to view photos. Source: 

AFP, Reuters

Read also: ‘Foul-mouthed’ Duterte most popular politician in Philippines

Duterte favours a “soft landing” for the issue and said Saturday it would be counter-productive for his militarily weak nation, which hosts small units of US forces, to confront China or undertake actions that could lead to armed conflict.

“I assured everybody that there are only two options there: We go to fight, which we cannot afford at all, or talk,” he added.

On Friday during an overnight visit to Indonesia, Duterte announced China had pledged to help build drug rehabilitation centres to treat Filipino crystal meth users.

Law enforcement officials believe criminal gangs in China, Taiwan and Hong Kong supply most of the illegal and highly addictive stimulants to the Philippines.

“Only China has offered to help us,” Duterte said Friday, according to an official transcript of a speech he gave to the Filipino community in Jakarta.

Read also: ‘I burned the flag of Singapore’

The UN Security Council has agreed to start work at once on a new series of sanctions on North Korea after its fifth nuclear test drew global condemnation.

During a closed-door meeting Friday, the council strongly condemned the test and agreed to begin drafting a new resolution under article 41 of the UN charter, which provides for sanctions.

“The members of the Security Council will begin to work immediately on appropriate measures under article 41 in a Security Council resolution,” New Zealand’s Ambassador Gerard van Bohemen, who holds the council’s rotating presidency, told reporters after the urgent talks.

South Korea, the United States, Japan, Russia and China all condemned the blast at the Punggye-ri nuclear site, the North’s most powerful yet at 10 kilotons.

In Seoul, dozens of protesters burned an effigy of the North’s leader Kim Jong-Un and North Korean flags and called for “strong retaliation”, including pre-emptive attacks on the North’s nuclear complex.

“Eliminate Kim Jong-Un!” and “Destroy North Korea’s nuclear weapons!” the elderly activists shouted.

Some newspapers were equally scathing. “South Korea left unguarded before nuclear maniac,” read the banner headline of the top-selling Chosun Ilbo.

But the North’s ruling party newspaper said Saturday it would not submit to US nuclear “blackmail”, and described the South’s President Park Geun-Hye as a “dirty prostitute” for working with US forces.

“Gone are the days never to return when the US could make a unilateral nuclear blackmail against the DPRK,” said Rodong Sinmun, using the country’s official name.

The Security Council met at the request of Japan, South Korea and the United States to agree on a response, despite resistance from Pyongyang’s ally China to calls for tougher measures.

After the meeting China’s Ambassador Liu Jieyi sidestepped questions about Beijing’s support for sanctions.

“We are opposed to testing and we believe that it is more urgent than ever to work together to ensure denuclearization of the Korean peninsula,” Liu said.

“All sides should refrain from mutual provocation and any action that might exacerbate the situation.” North Korea has been hit by five sets of UN sanctions since it first tested a nuclear device in 2006.

After Pyongyang carried out its fourth nuclear test, the council in March adopted the toughest sanctions resolution to date targeting North Korea’s trade in minerals and tightening banking restrictions.

But since that measure was adopted, North Korea has carried out 21 ballistic missile launches, US Ambassador Samantha Power said, describing those tests and Pyongyang’s second nuclear detonation this year as “more than brazen defiance.” “North Korea is seeking to perfect its nuclear weapons and their delivery vehicles so they can hold the region and the world hostage under threat of nuclear strike,” Power said.

Pyongyang’s state media said Friday the nuclear test had realized the country’s goal of being able to fit a miniaturized warhead on a rocket.

“Our nuclear scientists staged a nuclear explosion test on a newly developed nuclear warhead at the country’s northern nuclear test site,” a TV presenter said.

The first indications of an underground explosion came when seismic monitors detected a 5.3-magnitude “artificial earthquake” Friday near the Punggye-ri nuclear site.

“The 10-kiloton blast was nearly twice the (power of the) fourth nuclear test and slightly less than the Hiroshima bombing, which was measured about 15 kilotons,” said Kim Nam-Wook of the South’s meteorological agency.

North Koreans gathered around public screens to watch the official announcement of the test – which came on the 68th anniversary of the country’s founding.

The nuclear program has accompanied a series of ballistic missile launches, the latest of which took place on Monday as world powers gathered for a G20 meeting in China.

This week’s events pose yet another challenge for China, which has been under pressure to rein in its increasingly aggressive neighbor.

Beijing strongly condemned the test, but has limited room to maneuver. Its priority is to avoid the regime’s collapse, which would create a crisis on its border and potentially shift the balance of power on the Korean peninsula toward the United States.

US Defense Secretary Ashton Carter called for further pressure on North Korea, but said China bore responsibility for tackling the problem.

“China shares important responsibility for this development and has an important responsibility to reverse it,” he said.

“It’s important that it use its location, its history and its influence to further the denuclearization of the Korean peninsula and not the direction things have been going.”

DANDONG, China – Tourists and the odd train made their way across China’s main border point with North Korea on Saturday, with residents largely brushing off Pyongyang’s fifth and largest nuclear test and little sign of stepped up security or scrutiny.

China, Pyongyang’s main diplomatic ally, is key in any effort to rein in North Korea’s nuclear programme. It has been infuriated by repeated nuclear and missile tests and has signed up to increasingly tough United Nations sanctions.

While China says it is fully committed to enforcing the sanctions, it has also made clear it does not think ordinary North Koreans should be made to suffer, and has long worried that totally cutting off Pyongyang would lead to the country’s collapse, sending waves of refugees its way.

China’s border city of Dandong, through which as much as 80 percent of the bilateral trade is conducted, would be the most obvious place for Beijing to make its displeasure with North Korea felt by slowing the flow of goods, even temporarily.

Residents said there had been no such reaction, even though the main bridge connecting the two sides had been closed on and off for repairs in the past few days, but not totally shut.

One Dandong businessman, who asked to be identified by his family name of Lu, said for him North Korea held no fascination – it was simply a place to trade with, though he did admit to being nervous about possible radiation. “There’s still huge demand for ordinary goods, like food and clothes,” he said. “There was a train this morning, one yesterday, one the day before. Things haven’t stopped.” At the main border post, trucks lined up to take goods into North Korea on Monday, the port not being opened for routine trade on weekends. “It’s business as usual, it’s no different from any other day,” said a 24-year-old woman who exports clothes to North Korea, declining to give her name.

Tourists had to walk across though, because of the repairs.

Shops around the border post and train station are packed with goods obviously aimed at the North Korean market like machinery, with Korean script featured prominently.

Some residents said they hadn’t even heard of the latest test, which has not received top billing in Chinese state media. “Trade has been increasing each year between North Korea and China. North Koreans rely on us for generators, natural resources, food, all sorts of things,” said Lu Shilei, 34, who runs tours to North Korea. “I don’t think the sanctions have had a huge impact, they’re only limited to a few products connected to the nuclear programme. There’s still lots of trade either way for common goods that ordinary people use.” China’s Foreign Ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment on whether border checks had been stepped up.

BRIGHT LIGHTS, NO LIGHTS

At night, Dandong’s bright lights stand in marked contrast to the darkness that looms from the North Korean side of the Yalu River which separates them, drawing a clear line between a booming China and impoverished North Korea.

Dandong has deep emotional ties to North Korea due to the 1950-53 Korean War, in which Mao Zedong’s forces fought alongside North Korea against a U.S.-lead UN coalition.

The “Broken Bridge”, bombed in half by U.S. aircraft in that war, is a major tourist draw, sitting in the centre of town next to the “Friendship Bridge” over which much of today’s bilateral trade is conducted. There is also a large war museum.

Trade between Beijing and Pyongyang has always been opaque, with experts believing much of the trade and aid China sends North Korea is off books and so difficult to track, making a true assessment of commercial ties close to impossible.

Officially, bilateral trade in the first seven months of the year fell 5.6 percent year-on-year, with China’s imports falling a larger 8.7 percent.

Business between the two is dwarfed by trade between China and capitalist South Korea, which was worth 908 billion yuan ($135.97 billion) in the January to July period, compared to just 17.7 billion yuan between China and North Korea.

Wang Quan, general manager of a trading firm that sells trucks, cars and buses to North Korea, said overall trade had suffered slightly because of sanctions, and also China’s own slowing economy, but overall he saw no major impact. “It’s just business as usual each time North Korea conducts a nuclear test. Nothing really changes for a small business like ours.” On Friday, China’s Foreign Ministry would not be drawn on whether China would support further sanctions, saying only that it has fulfilled previous U.N. resolutions and would continue to take a responsible and constructive attitude towards talks at the Security Council.

China is also angry at Washington and Seoul for a decision to place an advanced anti-missile system in South Korea, saying it threatens China’s security and won’t help bring North Korea back to the negotiating table.

Cai Jian, an expert on North Korea at Shanghai’s Fudan University, said China had always been very careful in having targeted sanctions, aimed directly at the nuclear and missile programmes. “We don’t put sanctions on the ordinary people, as that would affect the stability of the whole country,” Cai said. “I don’t think there will be any extra measures.” ($1 = 6.6778 Chinese yuan renminbi)