Kim Jong Un's Next Nuke Test Could Cause Environmental Damage

North Korea's next nuclear test could have massive repercussions for the environment, possibly leading to infighting that could collapse Kim Jong Un's regime, according to a defector.

"A nuclear test which the North is trying to conduct at the Punggye-ri test site will break the country into two pieces," Thae Yong-ho, a former minister at the North Korean Embassy in London who defected to South Korea in August, said in an interview with Voice of America Tuesday, according to the Yonhap News Agency.

Analysis of satellite imagery of the Punggye-ri Nuclear Test Site from 38 North found that "substantial tunnel excavation" is occurring where four of the past five nuclear tests took place. The site is located along a path that connects Pyongyang with the North Hamkyong Province.

"All northward roads and railways pass by Punggye-ri. If a massive explosion pollutes the area, and subsequently Pyongyang loses its control over the border areas of North Hamkyong Province, a massive defection will take place there," Thae added, likening the effect of an uncontrolled nuclear explosion to an apocalypse, and pointing out that Punggye-ri is not far from China. Efforts to get China to help prevent the North from conducting a nuclear test should also be made."

United Press International reports that the USS Carl Vincon will soon be deployed to South Korea for a joint exercise and as a possible show of force to North Korea.

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