North Korea claims it’s now able to nuke U.S. mainland

USA Today

The nation is celebrating its first successful test of a submarine-launched missile.

The country's leader — Kim Jong Un — says the U.S. mainland is now within striking range of his nuclear weapons.

A traffic police woman directs vehicles at a street

That sounds like a threat.

Joel Wit, a former U.S. nuclear negotiator with North Korea, says he's concerned, but not worried. "Because — despite this success — we’re not within striking range of their nuclear weapons."

The threat to the U.S. mainland does not yet exist; there's no evidence North Korea has yet been able to miniaturize its nuclear weapons to fit into a warhead.

A missile is fired during a drill by Hwasong artillery

It's also extremely unlikely they could get a submarine within range of the U.S. coast: The new North Korean missile only appears to have a range of about 600 miles. But Wit says there is cause for concern, "because this is just one more step in terms of steady progress that North Korea is making in building nuclear weapons and building missiles to deliver them.”

A surface-to-surface medium long-range strategic ballistic

“I’m concerned, and I think it should be ongoing concern for everyone.” The biggest concern, says Wit, is that North Korea is working to develop a working Intercontinental Ballistic Missile, or ICBM. “If they get that thing working then they will be able to reach the United States, and that, of course, is a serious concern for all of us.”