The claims, however, have been met by varying degrees of scepticism from administrations including the White House who said that the US “will not accept [North Korea] as a nuclear state”. Many prominent military, nuclear and geopolitical experts have also expressed their doubts. These include John Carlson, the former chief of Australia’s Nuclear Safeguards and Non-Proliferation Office who said that it would be a major challenge for the North Koreans to develop a nuclear weapon as powerful as a hydrogen bomb.
Despite these doubts, the international community has denounced the actions of North Korea. Even North Korea's ally, China, has spoken out, strongly opposing the test and saying that it was not warned of the experiment. Russia, a traditional friend and geopolitical partner of North Korea also expressed concerns. NATO Secretary General, Jens Stoltenberg said that "the nuclear weapons test announced by North Korea undermines regional and international security, and is in clear breach of UN Security Council resolutions".
The tests were announced on North Korean national television, by a clearly jubilant newsreader, who declared that "we [North Korea] will not give up a nuclear program as long as the United States maintains its stance of aggression." She declared the test as "perfect".
An emergency UN Security Council meeting has been scheduled in New York for Wednesday, 11am (local time) in order to discuss the situation and possible reactions by the international community. It is understood that South Korea and Japan have already held their own emergency meetings within their own governments.
Hugh McFarlane