Bottom line.... from 2008 to 2016 N. Korea went absolutely ham in their development of ICBM's, SLBM's, and the miniaturization of nuclear warheads. Obama's plan... "let my clock run out and hand it off". https://www.wsj.com/articles/trump-faces-north-korean-challenge-1479855286 Barack Obama Warns Donald Trump on North Korea Threat White House says new president’s top foreign priority should be nuclear Pyongyang By Gerald F. Seib, Jay Solomon and Carol E. Lee WSJ Nov. 22, 2016 5:54 pm ET The Obama administration considers North Korea to be the top national security priority for the incoming administration, a view it has conveyed to President-elect Donald Trump’s transition team, according to people familiar with the conversations.
No, we can start another thread for that. And they aren't making nukes, they are enriching Uranium but still a long ways off. Tony... there's about a million more aspects to ICBM's than just the engine bud. That's 1960's stuff and the easiest part. Their SLBM program however was a little more tricky and they pulled that off engine-wise in 2014 as I recall without looking. Just like they bought diesel subs from Russia, rocket motors are school.
"Um... Mr President, you might want to read this." North Korea: Test Stand for Vertical Launch of Sea-Based Ballistic Missiles Spotted By: Joseph S. Bermudez Jr. October 28, 2014 Military Affairs, Satellite Imagery Summary Recent press reports have raised the possibility that North Korea is developing the capability to launch ballistic missiles from submarines.[1] A review of commercial satellite imagery since 2010 covering submarine bases and submarine shipyards has identified a new test stand at the North’s Sinpo South Shipyard, probably intended to explore the possibility of launching ballistic missiles from submarines or of a shipboard vertical launch ballistic missile capability. The new installation is the right size and design to be used for the research, development, and testing of the process of ejecting a missile out of a launch tube as well as evaluating its compatibility with submarines and surface combatants as well as the missiles themselves.
1.You brought up Iran.They were around 1-3 years from nuclear weapons when Obama got them to stop so they are not a long way off . 2.No engine,no ICBMs.
"Nothing to worry about here Mr President... Kim is waiting for 2019". North Korea test-launches “Polaris-1” ballistic missile from submarine Analysts say DPRK missile subs could threaten Japan, South Korea in five years. Sean Gallagher - May 11, 2015 4:35 pm UTC Kim Jong-un watches as North Korea's navy successfully test-launches a ballistic missile from a submarine on May 9.
1) Brought up Iran to show you how difficult it is and how it requires years to develop these things. 2) No miniaturized warheads... no nuke ICBM's. ___________________________________________________________ https://www.nytimes.com/2016/05/07/world/asia/north-korea-nuclear-us-strategy.html By David E. Sanger and Choe Sang-Hun May 6, 2016 A missile test by North Korea on April 23. The missile was apparently launched from a 2,000-ton Sinpo-class submarine and did not travel far.Credit...KCNA, via Agence France-Presse — Getty Images SEOUL, South Korea — After years of trying to separate fact from propaganda about North Korea’s nuclear program, American and South Korean intelligence officials say they have concluded that the country can now mount a small nuclear warhead on short- and medium-range missiles capable of hitting much of Japan and South Korea. The United States and its allies have sought for nearly a decade to prevent the North from gaining such capabilities, ever since it detonated its first atomic device a decade ago. Their failure is likely to raise new questions about the effectiveness of the policy toward North Korea, while ushering the long-simmering nuclear standoff with the North into a more perilous phase under its combative young leader, Kim Jong-un.
"Yes Mr President, its ok to let a rogue state develop a miniature nuclear warhead to place on top of an ICBM.... they don't have the motors yet". "Gee Mr President... I have no idea why they would want to miniaturize a nuclear warhead... they don't have the motors." "Yes Mr President, those motors are readily available and have been around since the 1960's. Russia has tons they will sell to anyone who has the $'s." "Yes Mr President, your vacation is all scheduled and the weather there looks beautiful."