State TV announces this morning the country has entered combat mode
Rockets and long-range artillery aimed at Guam, Hawaii and U.S. mainland
South Korea say they haven't noticed 'unusual' military activity over borderNorth Korea has warned that it is close to attacking U.S. military bases - including on mainland America - as the rogue state accused their 'enemy' of intimidation and threats.
The communist country's state media has said its strategic rocket and long-range artillery units have been ordered to enter the highest level of combat mode and are trained on three targets.
Kim Jong-Un's dictatorship said on television it would be looking to hit Guam, Hawaii and mainland America after U.S. bombers flew more sorties threatening the North.
From this moment, the Supreme Command of the Korean People's Army will be putting in combat duty posture No. 1 all field artillery units including long-range artillery units strategic rocket units that will target all enemy object in U.S. invasionary bases on its mainland, Hawaii and Guam,' the North's KCNA news agency said.
South Korea's defence ministry said it had detected no signs of unusual activity by the North's military but will monitor the situation.
The South and the U.S. military are conducting drills until the end of April, which they have stressed are strictly defensive in nature.
But the rival Koreas have had several bloody naval skirmishes in disputed Yellow Sea waters and there is some worry among experts in the region that more fighting could follow.
The North previously threatened nuclear attack on the United States and South Korea, although it is not believed to have the technology to hit continental United States with an atomic weapon.
It has responded angrily to reports that America has flown B-52 bomber sorties over the Korean peninsula as part of the annual military drills with South Korean forces.
North Korea has stepped up its military exercises in response to what it regards as 'hostile' joint drills by South Korea and the United States after Pyongyang was sanctioned by the U.N. Security Council for a nuclear test in February.
It is not known if North Korea possesses drones, although a report on South Korea's Yonhap news agency last year said that it had obtained 1970s-era U.S. target drones from Syria to develop into attack drones.
Tensions have mounted on the Korean peninsula since North Korea staged its first successful long-range rocket launch in December.
It followed this up with its third nuclear weapons test in February.
Pyongyang is barred from developing missile and nuclear-related technology under U.N. sanctions imposed after previous nuclear tests.
Most military experts say that the North will likely not launch an all-out war against South Korea and its U.S. ally due to its outdated weaponry.
Dr Virginie Grzelczyk, an expert on North Korea at Nottingham Trent University, said: 'South Korea and the United States are still holding joint military drills until the end of April, and in light of this military activity, North Korea seems to be flexing some muscles, or actually signifying that it, too, is a military power.
'The pictures we have seen can be read as trying to reach an international audience, but also a domestic one, reinforcing the idea that the country is strong in light of a potential U.S. or South Korean aggression.
'The Kim Jong Un regime is still quite young, and though North Korea has had a string of successes recently with its rocket launches, Kim Jong Un's military credentials are very slim and he still remains to be seen as a military leader.
'The United States and South Korea has also just signed a new military plan yesterday that would provide for a joint military response in case of North Korean provocations.
'This leads to an interesting point, as conventional deterrence theory would say the U.S. would protect South Korea in case of war, but here we are dealing with small provocations.
'It seems to me that both the United States and North Korea as well have a very clear understanding of first-use of military might, and that any aggression is understood as being potentially leading to a nuclear strike.
'The US has the capabilities, and North Korea has bombs, so it is unclear whether or not they could actually launch them in a reliable fashion.
'Finally, any movement made by the US – be it reinforcing its missile defence in light of a potential North Korean threat or conducting joint drills with South Korea – will be exploited and framed by North Korea as being aggressive moves, which they to some extent are, as in this particular game the U.S. is protecting their strategic interests and North Korea is protecting theirs.'
Pyongyang is viewed as more likely to stage an attack along a disputed sea border between the two countries as it did in 2010 when it shelled a South Korean island, killing four people.
Such a move would provide a major test for new South Korean President Park Geun-hye, who took office pledging closer ties with the North if it abandoned its nuclear push.
Read more:
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2299220/North-Korea-threatens-long-range-rockets-AMERICA-carries-live-drills-prepare-coastal-defences.html#ixzz2OeuqjSiI
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