| Summary/Abstract |
On January 6, 2016, North Korea conducted its fourth nuclear test (the first was in 2006) in the face of strong opposition from the international community. North Korea claimed it had successfully detonated a hydrogen bomb. The US and several other countries denied this claim, describing it instead as a“thermonuclear weapons”test. During a visit to China in late January 2016, US Secretary of State John Kerry said that it was not important whether North Korea had staged a successful hydrogen bomb test or not, but what was important was that the country was attempting to do so. Kerry's remark was tantamount to an official recognition that North Korea had detonated a hydrogen bomb. The US and several other countries see this fourth nuclear test of the DPRK’s as an indication that the country has made crucial progress with its nuclear ambitions. The test prompted a major policy shift from the US, South Korea and Japan, clarifying their formerly fuzzy strategy on North Korea, its nuclear program and the Korean Peninsula and the political environment in Northeast Asia.
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