The clock continues to count down for North Korea, and most news going in and out of that country is bad.
First, it appears that 200 North Koreans died at the atomic testing site of Punggye-Ri — 100 in a tunnel collapse and then 100 more in a rescue attempt immediately following this sad incident. This was just one of several signs that the test site may be in danger of collapsing totally, which would release a toxic cloud of radiation as if the last North Korean nuclear test had been conducted above ground. This would be a circumstance that would be extremely unwelcome to China — which shares a border with North Korea in the immediate area — but also to other nations in the region and the world.
It’s been speculated that a feared collapse could be the reason why North Korea hinted in September at conducting an open-air test of a hydrogen bomb somewhere in the Pacific Ocean — a prospect that brought swift condemnation from the United States and other countries.
Vice President Mike Pence, speaking at Minot Air Force Base in North Dakota, reiterated that America’s patience with the regime of Kim Jong Un was running out even as an American B-2 stealth bomber flew a test mission across the Pacific and North Korea beefed up security at public monuments to quell unrest among its hungry young citizens.
In this clip, Henry Kazianis of the Center for the National Interest, Republican former Utah Congressman Jason Chaffetz and former CIA officer Buck Sexton offer their perspectives on the situation to Fox’s Martha McCallum about where this state of affairs will go from here. Watch, as the insights offered by these men are compelling and up-to-date.