
North Korea threatens nuclear war in SPACE as it joins Russia and China in condemning Trump's $175billion Golden Dome missile defence system
North Korea has warned that a nuclear war could erupt in space, as it joined Russia and China in condemning US president Donald Trump 's futuristic vision of a 'Golden Dome' missile defence system.
The $175billion (£129billion) project, proposed by Trump and inspired by Israel 's Iron Dome system, is aimed at blocking threats from adversaries like China and Russia.
But Pyongyang's foreign ministry said Trump's plan risks turning 'outer space into a potential nuclear war field' and called it 'the height of self-righteousness [and] arrogance.'
It accused the US of being 'hell-bent... to militarise outer space' and starkly warned that the programme could spark a 'a global nuclear and space arms race.'
Earlier today, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said that Trump's project undermines the foundations of strategic stability as it involves the creation of a global missile defence system.
And last week, Beijing said it was 'seriously concerned' about the Golden Dome, which it said has 'strong offensive implications'.
China's foreign ministry said: 'The United States, in pursuing a "US-first" policy, is obsessed with seeking absolute security for itself.
'This violates the principle that the security of all countries should not be compromised and undermines global strategic balance and stability.'
This picture taken on May 8, 2025 shows a joint striking drill of long-range artillery and missile systems of the Korean People's Army eastern front division at an undisclosed location in North Korea
North Korea has threatened to start a nuclear war in space, after joining Russia and China in slamming US president Donald Trump's (pictured) futuristic vision of a 'Golden Dome' missile defence system
Kim Jong Un speaks during a launching ceremony of a new naval destroyer at a western port in Nampo, North Korea, on April 25, 2025
Hong Min, a senior analyst at the Korea Institute for National Unification, told AFP that Kim Jong Un likely sees Trump's Golden Dome as a threat that can "significantly weaken" its nuclear arsenal.
'If the US completes its new missile defence programme, the North will be forced to develop alternative means to counter or penetrate it,' he said.
In April, Kim Jong Un unveiled a nuclear-capable naval destroyer that he says will bolster North Korea's ability to defend itself in the face of perceived aggression from the US and its regional allies.
The North Korean leader attended the warship's launch ceremony at the western port of Nampo with his teenage daughter Kim Ju Ae, according to state-run media.
Ju Ae has been widely regarded by analysts as the likely successor to Kim since she was referred to as a 'great person of guidance' in an official report last year.
Kim said the 5,000-ton vessel would bolster efforts to expand the operational range and preemptive strike capabilities of his nuclear-armed military.
The 'multi-purpose' destroyer, designed to handle a variety of arms including nuclear-capable ballistic and cruise missiles, was touted as the first in a new class of heavily armed warships.
Kim, who has framed the arms buildup as a response to the supposed danger posed by the US and its allies in Asia, said the destroyer would be handed over to the navy early next year before beginning active duty.
According to state media, Kim has said the 5,000-ton vessel will bolster efforts to expand the operational range and preemptive strike capabilities of his nuclear-armed military
Jo Chun Ryong, a secretary in the ruling Workers' party, claimed the ship was equipped with the 'most powerful weapons' and was built 'within 400-odd days'.
Kim also took aim at efforts by the US and South Korea to expand joint military exercises and update their nuclear deterrence strategies, which he portrayed as preparations for war.
He vowed to 'respond decisively to this geopolitical crisis and ongoing developments,' the Korean Central News Agency reported.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


Reuters
19 minutes ago
- Reuters
India's Vedanta says Trump's tariffs damaging, seeks import curbs
June 4 (Reuters) - Indian metals-to-oil conglomerate Vedanta ( opens new tab said on Wednesday that U.S. President Donald Trump's doubling of aluminium tariffs to 50% poses a threat to the Indian industry already struggling with surging imports. Trump's latest round of tariffs on aluminium and steel, which took effect on Wednesday, have unsettled the global markets. "The 50% tariff announced by Trump is damaging to the Indian aluminium industry, which is already under pressure from surging imports that threaten to create surplus and risk to domestic market access," a Vedanta spokesperson told Reuters. The miner, which is the country's largest aluminium producer, urged the Indian government to implement tariffs to protect against imports. "..There should be duty guard-rails for the aluminium industry as well which has so far invested more than $20 billion to set up the current domestic primary aluminium capacity," the spokesperson said. India's cumulative aluminum exports fell 19% to 2.24 million metric tons in the fiscal year ended March 2025, according to government data. Separately, the country's federal steel minister said earlier this week that the impact of Trump's steel tariffs would be minor on the local industry, as India, the world's second-largest crude steel producer, does not export to the U.S. in significant quantities. In April, India imposed a 12% temporary tariff on some steel imports, locally known as a safeguard duty, to curb a surge in cheap shipments primarily from China.


New Statesman
27 minutes ago
- New Statesman
Who will save local news?
Illustration by Harry Haysom / Ikon Images The 160-year history of the South London Press has come to an abrupt end. Its website shows a somewhat mournful 'This site can't be reached' message. If only the outpouring of grief from south-east Londoners across social media had been matched by them buying the paper or paying for its digital content, it may never have come to this. But the locals of Dulwich, Greenwich and Millwall cannot alone be blamed. Shifts in societal habits and media consumption mean the South London Press is just the latest of almost 300 local titles which have closed in the last 20 years. The number of journalists on regional and local titles has dropped from around 9,000 in 2007 to 3,000 in 2022. The reasons are well documented: the shift of property, jobs and motoring ads to digital; the hoovering up of ad revenue by Google and Meta while also controlling visibility of content; and an endless feed of more entertaining content for scrollers have left publishers starved of BBC's expansion of local online news rubbed salt into a weeping wound. Cuts and consolidation followed resulting in the loss of experienced journalists, closure of town-centre offices in favour of regional 'hubs' covering vast areas and titles becoming less local. Readers turned away and the doom loop continued. The consequences of all this are less well understood. Local journalism always served a dual purpose. Not only did it hold power to account and reflect on important local issues, covering council meetings and magistrates' courts, it also contributed to a sense of place and pride. Those stories about dog shows and weddings and giant vegetables were important (although admittedly I didn't appreciate that as I wrote them for the Harlow Star) because they knitted people in the community together. There is much research showing Reform's popularity in towns that have lost pride in their high streets and communities. The local paper lay at the heart of those places. Also lost is the pipeline of stories and staff to the national media. Ever wondered why the national news is so dominated by Punch and Judy political stories? In part it is to fill the gaps once crackling with fascinating tales from local reporters. Already there are concerns some areas of the UK are becoming 'news deserts', with no trusted local news coverage. Donald Trump won 91 per cent of counties categorised as 'news deserts' in last year's US election. In those gaps voters were fed less trustworthy, more polarising content from social media and national sources. Subscribe to The New Statesman today from only £8.99 per month Subscribe The situation is not entirely bleak. The big owners of local media still attract significant traffic. In April 2024, regional Reach titles were visited by 58 per cent of online adults, Newsquest by 28 per cent and National World by 27 per cent. And there are exciting start-ups, such as Mill Media, building engaged communities in Glasgow, Manchester and beyond. There has been much hand-wringing about the crisis, with calls for a government innovation fund for local news, and tax relief, greater philanthropy or charity status for news sites. The Culture Secretary, Lisa Nandy, has spoken of local media as an important bulwark against misinformation, but in a fiscally constrained environment there will be little public support for tax breaks for news organisations. Unless part of Nandy's media plan is building a time machine, I am sceptical of its success. The artifice of AI has once again resulted in very real-world consequences. The Lib Dem MP Max Wilkinson was threatened with violence and told he would be tracked down after an AI-edited video appeared to show him calling Nigel Farage a 'c**t' in the Commons. The clip was posted on X by the Spen Valley Reform Party account and viewed almost 100,000 times before it was deleted and an apology issued. There was no response from X to a complaint. It's estimated 34 million images are being created daily by AI. The spread of misinformation, and its ability to undermine our democracy, is becoming ever greater as we move to an increasingly visual and aural media world. Spen Valley of all places should have been alert to the dangers of minds being manipulated by media. Trump is such a fan of Fox News that his national intelligence director, Tulsi Gabbard, is apparently considering delivering his regular intelligence briefings in the style of a Fox bulletin. Currently, the president's daily brief is a written online document (yawn!) which Trump has reportedly read less than once a week since being in office – fewer times than his predecessors. Hence the plans to come up with a style, insiders say, would be 'more aligned with how he likes to consume information'. Imagine it: 'So that's the siege on Gaza and troop movements in Ukraine, Mr President. And now to the weather…' Reform MP Lee Anderson has been doing his pound-shop Donald routine with an outburst at local news site Nottinghamshire Live. In a Facebook post he raged: 'We will take our country back and these lefty out-of-touch, low-level so-called journalists will have to go and get a proper job.' The post was a response to a report about the £25k cost of a by-election, which was triggered just days after the local elections when a newly elected Reform councillor quit. Presumably to get a proper job. [See also: Will Jeremy Corbyn trap the government on Gaza?] Related
.jpg%3Ftrim%3D0%2C50%2C0%2C50%26width%3D1200%26height%3D800%26crop%3D1200%3A800&w=3840&q=100)

The Independent
an hour ago
- The Independent
Steve Bannon keeps calling for Lindsey Graham to be ‘thrown in jail' for ‘stirring it up' in Ukraine
While Donald Trump largely remains silent after Ukraine's daring 'Spiderweb' drone operation in Russia, one of the president's fiercest loyalists is calling for a top Republican critic of the Kremlin to be arrested for 'stirring it up' in Kyiv. Over the weekend, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) and Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) – who cosponsored a Senate measure that would slap 500 percent tariffs on countries that buy Russian energy products – visited with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. 'I would expect next week that the Senate will start moving the sanctions bill," Graham declared on Friday during a news conference in Ukraine. 'There are House members that are ready to move in the House and you will see congressional action.' 'Russia indiscriminately kills men, women and children. It's time for the world to act decisively against Russia's aggression by holding China and others accountable for buying cheap Russian oil that props up Putin's war machine,' Graham added during his Ukraine trip. The meeting with Zelensky, meanwhile, comes as Ukraine and Russia s till remain far apart on ceasefire talks, resulting in Trump growing increasingly frustrated over his own efforts to bring peace to a war that he previously promised he'd end in 24 hours. This has resulted in Trump expressing his annoyance with Russian President Vladimir Putin, whom he has largely sympathized with throughout the war, while suggesting the administration could just walk away from peace negotiations. With MAGA raging over the Ukraine drone attacks and suggesting the 'Deep State' could be responsible for the stunning raids, Steve Bannon has directed much of his ire towards Graham. Besides saying that the White House needs to openly denounce Zelensky for the military strikes, the former Trump chief strategist is also urging Trump to punish the South Carolina lawmaker for his diplomatic trip. 'The White House has to condemn this immediately and pull all support,' Bannon exclaimed during Monday's broadcast of his War Room program. 'And tell Lindsey Graham to come home, or we are going to put you under arrest when you come home. You're stirring it up!' The far-right provocateur further accused Graham of working against Trump behind the scenes, claiming the senator promised Zelensky that he'd get the sanctions measure passed regardless of the president's support for the bill. 'He's stirring it up over there,' Bannon reiterated. Meanwhile, with Graham applauding the 'ever-resourceful Ukraine' for using 'creative drone warfare tactics to successfully attack Russian bombers and military assets,' Bannon has continued to call for the president to toss the longtime Trump ally in prison or even kick him out of the country. 'Two things ought to happen: either cancel his passport and don't let him back in the country, or put him in jail if he comes back,' Bannon told NewsNation anchor Chris Cuomo on Monday night. 'Lindsey Graham is stirring it up right now, and people better wake up to the fact that we're getting sucked into this war, and if we get sucked in much more, it's going to be tough [to get out].' Still not done railing against the senator, Bannon brought it back up on Tuesday during the show handover with Real America's Voice host Eric Bolling. Asked by Bolling 'what the hell is Lindsey Graham doing in Ukraine right now,' Bannon repeated that the hawkish lawmaker was 'stirring it up' overseas before once again calling for Graham to be imprisoned. 'This is why I say he should be arrested,' he fumed. 'Either cut his passport off so he can never come back to the country, or arrest him. He's a troublemaker, and this now, he's egging the deep state on and misleading the Ukrainian people that we're all in on this.'He went on to say that the Ukrainian people 'understand the American people don't support this, and we're not gonna be there,' adding that 'we want to cut all the money off' to aiding Ukraine. At the same time, Bannon insisted that the United States is sympathetic towards Russia. 'The American people and the Russian people have no problem,' he concluded. 'We don't want to fight each other.'