North Korea missile: US says it will use military force 'if we must'


The US has said it will use its "considerable military forces" on North Korea "if we must", following Tuesday's long-range missile test.
US ambassador Nikki Haley said a new resolution will also be tabled against Pyongyang at the United Nations.
She described the test as a sharp military escalation and also threatened to use trade restrictions.
The missile launch, the latest in a series of tests, was in defiance of a ban by the UN Security Council.
Meanwhile, US Defence Secretary Jim Mattis and his Japanese counterpart Tomomi Inada said the test was an "unacceptable provocation".
A statement released by the US defence department said the two spoke on the phone, where Gen Mattis said the US was committed to defend Japan and provide deterrence.
Ms Haley said on Wednesday that North Korea's test launch of an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) was "quickly closing off the possibility of a diplomatic solution".
"The United States is prepared to use the full range of our capabilities to defend ourselves, and our allies," she told the UN Security Council, which met for an emergency session to discuss the test.
"One of our capabilities lies with our considerable military forces. We will use them, if we must, but we prefer not to have to go in that direction," she said.
Ms Haley, who said she discussed the issue with the president, said the US could cut off trade with countries which continued to trade with North Korea in violation of UN resolutions.
"We will look at any country that chooses to do business with this outlaw regime," she says.
Earlier, US President Donald Trump criticised China for its trade with North Korea.
Mr Trump has arrived in Warsaw where he is due to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping for the second time. He will later travel to Hamburg for the G20 summit, where world leaders are expected to discuss the missile test.

What have other countries said?

The French ambassador told the UN Security Council that France also favours a new resolution on North Korea, which would tighten sanctions.
Russia, which condemned the test, said the possibility of using military measures "should be excluded".
China's representative said North Korea's actions were unacceptable, but also repeated China and Russia's call for all involved to stand down.
They have proposed that while North Korea halts its missile and nuclear programmes, the US and South Korea freezes their joint military exercises and also reverse plans to deploy a controversial anti-missile system in the South.
Both Russia and China are permanent members of the UN Security Council and could veto any new resolution.

What has North Korea said?

Tuesday's launch was North Korea's first-ever test launch of an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM).
State news agency KCNA quoted leader Kim Jong-un as saying the test was a "gift" to the Americans on their independence day.
The report warned of the possibility of more tests, saying he had ordered officials to "frequently send big and small 'gift packages' to the Yankees".
Pyongyang said earlier the Hwasong-14 ICBM had reached an altitude of 2,802km (1,731 miles) and flew 933km for 39 minutes before hitting a target in the sea.
North Korea, it said, was now "a full-fledged nuclear power that has been possessed of the most powerful inter-continental ballistic rocket capable of hitting any part of the world".
But while experts agree that the test shows Pyongyang has a long-range projectile, many are sceptical that its missiles can successfully deliver warheads.
  • A long-range missile usually designed to carry a nuclear warhead
  • The minimum range is 5,500km (3,400 miles), although most fly about 10,000km or more
  • Pyongyang has previously displayed two types of ICBMs: the KN-08, with a range of 11,500km, and the KN-14, with a range of 10,000km, but before 4 July had not claimed to have flight tested an ICBM. It is not clear what differentiates the Hwasong-14
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Europe migrant crisis: EU blamed for 'soaring' death toll


Amnesty International has blamed "failing EU policies" for the soaring death toll among refugees and migrants in the central Mediterranean.
In a report, it said "cynical deals" with Libya consigned thousands to the risk of drowning, rape and torture.
It said the EU was turning a blind eye to abuses in Libyan detention centres, and was mostly leaving it up to sea rescue charities to save migrants.
More than 2,000 people have died in 2017 trying to get to Europe, it said.
The EU has so far made no public comments on Amnesty's report.
It comes as interior ministers from the 28-member bloc are meeting in Tallinn, Estonia, to discuss the migrant crisis.
They will review a $92m (£71m) action plan unveiled by the European Commission to deal with the issue.
The commission proposes to use more than 50% of the funds to boost the Libyan coastguard's capacity to stop traffickers launching boatloads of migrants out to sea to be rescued.
The rest is to help Italy feed, house and process the migrants who get there.
"Rather than acting to save lives and offer protection, European ministers... are shamelessly prioritising reckless deals with Libya in a desperate bid to prevent refugees and migrants from reaching Italy," said John Dalhuisen, Amnesty's Europe director.
"European states have progressively turned their backs on a search and rescue strategy that was reducing mortality at sea in favour of one that has seen thousands drown and left desperate men, women and children trapped in Libya, exposed to horrific abuses," he said.
Amnesty's report said measures implemented by the EU to strengthen search and rescue in the central Mediterranean in 2015 had dramatically decreased deaths at sea.
But this priority was short-lived, the document said, adding that the EU later shifted its focus to disrupting smugglers and preventing departures from Libya.
Such practices and an increasing use of unseaworthy boats had made the sea even more unsafe, Amnesty said.
Interceptions by the Libyan coastguard often put refugees and migrants at risk, the rights group warned.
It said that there were serious allegations that coastguard members were colluding with smugglers and abusing migrants.
"If the second half of this year continues as the first and urgent action is not taken, 2017 looks set to become the deadliest year for the deadliest migration route in the world," Mr Dalhuisen said.
"The EU must rethink its co-operation with Libya's woefully dysfunctional coastguard and deploy more vessels where they are desperately needed."
Mr Dalhuisen stressed that "ultimately the only sustainable and humane way to reduce the numbers risking such horrific journeys is to open more safe and legal routes for migrants and refugees to reach Europe".
 note on terminology: The BBC uses the term migrant to refer to all people on the move who have yet to complete the legal process of claiming asylum. This group includes people fleeing war-torn countries such as Syria, who are likely to be granted refugee status, as well as people who are seeking jobs and better lives, who governments are likely to rule are economic migrants.
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What's behind the India-China border stand-off?

For four weeks, India and China have been involved in a stand-off along part of their 3,500km (2,174-mile) shared border.
The two nations fought a war over the border in 1962 and disputes remain unresolved in several areas, causing tensions to rise from time to time.
Since this confrontation began last month, each side has reinforced its troops and called on the other to back down.
How did the row begin?
It erupted when India opposed China's attempt to extend a border road through a plateau known as Doklam in India and Donglang in China.
The plateau, which lies at a junction between China, the north-eastern Indian state of Sikkim and Bhutan, is currently disputed between Beijing and Thimphu. India supports Bhutan's claim over it.
India is concerned that if the road is completed, it will give China greater access to India's strategically vulnerable "chicken's neck", a 20km (12-mile) wide corridor that links the seven north-eastern states to the Indian mainland.
Indian military officials told regional analyst Subir Bhaumik that they protested and stopped the road-building group, which led Chinese troops to rush Indian positions and smash two bunkers at the nearby Lalten outpost.
"We did not open fire, our boys just created a human wall and stopped the Chinese from any further incursion," a brigadier said on condition of anonymity because he was not authorised to speak to the press.
Chinese officials say that in opposing the road construction, Indian border guards obstructed "normal activities" on the Chinese side, and called on India to immediately withdraw.

What is the situation now?

Both India and China have rushed more troops to the border region, and media reports say the two sides are in an "eyeball to eyeball" stand-off.
China also retaliated by stopping 57 Indian pilgrims who were on their way to the Manas Sarovar Lake in Tibet via the Nathu La pass in Sikkim. The lake is a holy Hindu site and there is a formal agreement between the neighbours to allow devotees to visit.
Bhutan, meanwhile, has asked China to stop building the road, saying it is in violation of an agreement between the two countries.

What does India say?

Indian military experts say Sikkim is the only area through which India could make an offensive response to a Chinese incursion, and the only stretch of the Himalayan frontier where Indian troops have a terrain and tactical advantage.
They have higher ground, and the Chinese positions there are squeezed between India and Bhutan.


"The Chinese know this and so they are always trying to undo our advantage there," retired Maj-Gen Gaganjit Singh, who commanded troops on the border, told the BBC.
Last week, the foreign ministry said that the construction "would represent a significant change of status quo with serious security implications for India".
Indian Defence Minister Arun Jaitley also warned that the India of 2017 was not the India of 1962, and the country was well within its rights to defend its territorial integrity.

What does China say?

China has reiterated its sovereignty over the area, saying that the road is in its territory and accusing Indian troops of "trespassing".
It said India would do well to remember its defeat in the 1962 war, warning Delhi that China was also more powerful than it was then.
On Monday, a Chinese foreign ministry spokesman said that the border in Sikkim had been settled in an 1890 agreement with the British, and that India's violation of this was "very serious".
The Global Times newspaper, meanwhile, accused India of undermining Bhutan's sovereignty by interfering in the road project, although Bhutan has since asked China to stop construction.

What's Bhutan's role in this?

Bhutan's Ambassador to Delhi Vetsop Namgyel says China's road construction is "in violation of an agreement between the two countries".
Bhutan and China do not have formal relations but maintain contact through their missions in Delhi.
Security analyst Jaideep Saikia told the BBC that Beijing had for a while now been trying to deal directly with Thimphu, which is Delhi's closest ally in South Asia.
"By raising the issue of Bhutan's sovereignty, they are trying to force Thimphu to turn to Beijing the way Nepal has," he said.

What next?

The region saw clashes between China and India in 1967, and tensions still flare occasionally. Commentators say the latest development appears to be one of the most serious escalations in recent years.
The fact that Tibet's spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama resides in India has also been a sticking point between the two countries.
This stand-off in fact, comes within weeks of China's furious protests against the Dalai Lama's visit to Arunachal Pradesh, an Indian state that China claims and describes as its own.
Relations between the Asian giants, however, may not slide further as China has allowed 56 Hindu pilgrims, who entered through the Indian state of Himachal Pradesh, to visit the Manas Sarovar site.
"They are heading for the lake and they are safe," senior tourism official Dheeraj Garbiyal said last week.
This, experts say, shows that the Chinese are not raising tensions on the whole border but specifically on the Sikkim-Bhutan stretch.
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Chinese deities flown on business class to Malaysia


Images of three revered Chinese deity statues went viral on social media after they were seen travelling in business class on a flight from China's port city of Xiamen to the Malaysian capital Kuala Lumpur. But what is the story behind it?

Who are the divine passengers?

The first was the Chinese sea goddess Mazu (also known as Matsu), widely worshipped in southern China as well as countries with large Taoist and Chinese Buddhist communities such as Malaysia, Vietnam and Taiwan.
She is a patroness of the sea and is believed to protect fishermen and sailors.
The other two statues are Qianliyan and Shunfeng'er, heavenly guardians of the goddess.
Qianliyan is known for his powers of far-sightedness while the demon Shunfeng'er possesses the incredible ability to hear all sounds carried by the wind, a role believed to aid sailors and passing ships from advancing storms.

Why were they in business class?

The three statues were sent to Malaysia and Singapore as part of an inaugural cultural exchange tour to pay tribute to the sea goddess and celebrate a festival in her name. It was organised by the Meizhou Mazu Ancestor Temple in China.
Photos being widely circulated on Chinese social media showed the statues leaving their coastal temple home and "checking in" at Xiamen Gaoqi International Airport.
"How did she get through security checks?" asked amused user Tong Huichun on the popular WeChat messaging app.
"It's normal for Mazu to give a tour. It's too far away so she's taking a flight. Taking a boat will take too long," said another WeChat user Gong Chang.
Temple staff told BBC News that the religious statues were escorted by "a delegation of more than 130 people" and brought onto a Xiamen Airlines flight heading to Kuala Lumpur International Airport.
They flew in comfort in business class, on tickets costing 2,091 yuan (£237) each.
With assistance from airline staff, devotees fastened the sacred statues into first row seats and "widened" them to allow more space.
Taking turbulence into consideration, the statues' feet were firmly fixed onto the seats with special harnesses.
"This is basic respect we have for the culture of Goddess Mazu," said a spokesperson who received the statues in Malaysia. "They were also more than 6ft high, so they had to fly business class."
They even had special passports, which staff from the temple said were a "special courtesy" provided by the airline.

Journey to the South: Where were they travelling from?

The statues came from a sacred sea temple located off the shores of Fujian province, known to its worshippers as being the birthplace of goddess Mazu.
They travelled more than 2,800km to another temple, the Thean Hou Chinese 
Temple staff highlighted the importance of their voyage.
"This is the body of our divine goddess, a symbol of Chinese folk culture," a representative told BBC News, adding that processions were held to celebrate the statues' safe arrivals.
All three statues have made their way to neighbouring Malacca city and are on their way to Singapore. They will then return to their home in China.
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Thirteen rescued as Marbella 'prostitution ring' smashed

Thirteen women forced to work as prostitutes in the Spanish resort near Marbella have been freed, police say.
The victims are thought to have been brought from Bulgaria to the Costa del Sol, where they were made to work on the streets of Puerto Banus.
Police also arrested 34 suspected gang members across Europe.
In a statement, police said the Bulgarian gang had sought "total control" of the upmarket resort.
They had brought women from poor areas of Bulgaria and forced them to work as prostitutes, threatening them and their families with violence if they refused.
The women were also made to steal from their clients, some of whom may have been drugged, police said.
The arrests came almost three years after police were made aware of the prostitution ring by a woman who escaped the gang's clutches.
It was then, they said, they had discovered "an enormous international network that operated mainly in Spain and Bulgaria".
Spanish police - who worked with their Bulgarian counterparts and the European Union police agency Europol - said most of the arrests were made in Spain, with eight in Bulgaria.
They also carried out searches at properties in both countries.
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Emmanuel Macron aboard France's nuclear submarine

President Emmanuel Macron has spent several hours underwater aboard a nuclear submarine to signal commitment to France's nuclear deterrent.
During the visit to "Le Terrible" submarine off Brittany coast, Mr Macron reportedly took part in a simulated missile launch.
France will be the sole EU nation with nuclear arms after 2019, when the UK is expected to leave the 28-member bloc.
Meanwhile, the new French government easily won its first confidence vote.
The cabinet led by Prime Minister Edouard Philippe was backed by 370 MPs in the lower house, with only 67 voting against.
Mr Philippe set out proposals for public spending cuts and labour reforms - a move condemned by the trade unions, who have threatened protest strikes in the autumn.
On Tuesday, President Macron was taken by helicopter to "Le Terrible" submarine in the Atlantic, about 300km (186 miles) off France's coast.
Mr Macron's office later published a photo, showing the president being lowered down aboard the submersible.

Mr Macron stressed the importance of France's nuclear deterrence, describing it as the "keystone of security".
The reported missile launch simulation was part of the president's daylong visit to nuclear weapons facilities at the Ile Longue base, near Brest.
It is home to the country's four nuclear-powered, ballistic missile-carrying submarines.
France maintains a fleet of nuclear-armed submarines and strike planes, and has about 300 operational nuclear warheads.
Support for the deterrent is deeply rooted in French society and history, ever since it became a nuclear power in the 1960s, correspondents say.
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Apple to scan iPhones for child sex abuse images

  Apple has announced details of a system to find child sexual abuse material (CSAM) on customers' devices. Before an image is stored on...