North Korea successfully conducted its first nuclear test on Monday, ignoring international warnings and risking economic sanctions, according to the North's official Korean Central News Agency.
Nations worldwide condemned the test with the United States and South Korea calling it a 'provocative act' and China stating that it 'resolutely opposed' the nuclear test that North Korea 'flagrantly conducted' to universal opposition.
The underground test was conducted 'successfully' and 'safely' with no leaks of radioactivity, according to KCNA. South Korea, the US and Russia confirmed a seismic tremor between 3.6 and 4.2 on Richter scale at 07:06 am (0136 GMT).
The power of the blast has not been officially confirmed, but the state-run Korea Institute of Geoscience and Mineral Resources said it was small, equivalent to around 550 tons of TNT explosives.
Though North Korea announced it will conduct the test last Tuesday, accusing the US of being hostile and trying to isolate it, no timeline was given.
Japan, South Korea and the United States have agreed to work closely in protest against North Korea's nuclear test, Japanese Foreign Minister Taro Aso said, adding that it is a 'considerable threat to the peace and stability of northeast Asia and the world.'
"North Korea's action can only lead to an intensification of the problems on the Korean Peninsula, threaten world peace and stability in the region and undermine nuclear non-proliferation," Russian Foreign Ministry spokesman Mikhail Kamynin said.
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