Earnest: North Korea’s Hydrogen Bomb Claim ‘Not Consistent’ with White House Intel

During today’s White House briefing, Josh Earnest was asked for the Obama administration’s reaction to concerns and reports from North Korea this morning about how they claim to have developed a hydrogen bomb.

Earnest said that President Obama was working to to discuss the matters with the presidents of China, South Korea, and other regional allies, but said that “initial analysis” by international officials said the data “is not consistent with the North Korean claims of a successful hydrogen bomb test.”

“North Korea continues to be one of the most isolated nations in the world, and their isolation has only deepened as they’ve sought to engage in increasingly provocative acts,” Earnest said. “There is only one path that will get them out the extreme poverty and isolation they now face,” which is to give up their nuclear ambitions.”

While Earnest said the government was still working to examine the nature of the weapons test, he impressed that the seismic activity detected from the region has not caused the assessment of North Korea’s military capabilities to change. The Hermit Kingdom has been conducting tests with nuclear weapons for the past 10 years, but international pressure and sanctions have not had any halting effect on their development program.

[h/t The Hill]
[Image via screengrab]

— —

>> Follow Ken Meyer (@KenMeyer91) on Twitter

New: The Mediaite One-Sheet "Newsletter of Newsletters"
Your daily summary and analysis of what the many, many media newsletters are saying and reporting. Subscribe now!