Obama: U.S. Will 'Stand Up' to NKorea Provocation

WASHINGTON, May 25, 2009 -- President Obama made his strongest denunciation yet of North Korea today, just hours after the country confirmed that it had carried out yet another nuclear weapons test.

"We will work with our friends and our allies to stand up to this behavior and we will redouble our efforts toward a more robust international nonproliferation regime that all countries have responsibilities to meet," the president said.

But even he acknowledged that all the previous sanctions, and United Nations resolutions had done virtually nothing to stop North Korea from pursuing its nuclear program.

"As a result, North Korea is not only deepening its own isolation, it's also inviting stronger international pressure," Obama said.

The president could impose tighter sanctions, ask for additional U.N. resolutions or try to pressure North Korea back to the negotiating table.

But according to a South Korean official, Pyongyang is carrying its latest provocation even further.

North Korea is planning to launch a short-range missile off its west coast either Tuesday or Wednesday, the official told the Yonhap news agency.

The tensions in the region also got a jolt from South Korea, which today announced that it would join the U.S.-led Proliferation Security Initiative, which was started in 2003 to keep nations like North Korea and Iran from getting missile and nuclear technology. Pyongyang has said that if South Korea joins the initiative, it would consider that a declaration of war.

A senior administration official said the president was briefed "several times" over the past week "with regard to potential North Korea actions," and was informed in the middle of the night by White House staff of a U.S. Geological Survey report of "likely seismic event in North Korea at 11:15 p.m." Sunday.

"On May 24, North Korea notified the State Department of its intention to conduct a nuclear test, without citing a specific timing, less than one hour prior to 9 p.m. EDT," the official said.