North Korea Says US within Range of Its Nuclear Weapons

North Korea threatened on Wednesday that the US was "well within" the range of Pyongyang’s nuclear weapons.

North Korea threatened on Wednesday that the US was "well within" the range of Pyongyang’s nuclear weapons. North Korea rockets

In an article posted on the official Uriminzokkiri website, a member of the Korean National Peace Committee -- a propaganda body -- said the North was now a "fully-independent rocket and nuclear weapons state".

"The United States should be acutely aware that the US mainland is now well within the range of our strategic rockets and nuclear weapons," the signed commentary said.
Pyongyang conducted a successful long-range rocket launch in December, followed by its third nuclear test on February 12.

This month's nuclear test also fuelled concerns that North Korea is refining the technical ability to place a miniaturized nuclear warhead on a long-range missile.

After analyzing debris from the rocket launch in December, the South Korean military estimated its possible range at around 10,000 kilometers (6,200 miles), bringing in the west coast of the United States.

In a separate commentary Wednesday, the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) slammed upcoming US-South joint military drills, and warned that the Korean peninsula was "an inch away from explosion".

Last year in October, North Korea made a similar threat, saying it possessed rockets capable of striking the continental United States.