美国北美防空司令部司令警告说，朝鲜可能正在计划新的具有核能力的洲际弹道导弹发射，他引用了最近在秘密独裁政权下进行的发动机试验。
特伦斯·奥肖内西将军也是美国北方司令部司令，他周四向参议院军事委员会提交了一份声明，警告说，2020年金正恩可能会恢复自2017年12月以来一直被冻结的洲际弹道导弹试验。
去年年底，金正日承诺在“不久的将来”推出一种“新的战略武器”
据韩联社报道，奥肖尼西周四表示，尽管独裁者“没有具体说明这种新武器是什么，但最近的发动机测试表明，朝鲜可能准备试飞一种更有能力的洲际弹道导弹设计”。
这位指挥官补充说，这种武器“可以增强金正日在危机或冲突中威胁我们祖国的能力。”
鉴于朝鲜任何新的洲际弹道导弹发射，奥肖内西强调了美国弹道导弹防御的重要性。他说，美国的防御是“可靠和致命的”，并暗示新的短程能力也可能最终被增加。
尽管美朝在解除制裁和无核化问题上的谈判失败，但金正日仍未恢复洲际弹道导弹或核武器试验。
去年，金正日承诺给唐纳德·特朗普总统送去一份“圣诞礼物”，这被广泛解读为对重启主要武器试验的威胁。
金正日没有遵守誓言，但据信朝鲜继续进行火箭和核研究，尽管它与美国关系缓和
金正日还下令在2019年定期进行短程导弹试验。特朗普否认了发射例行的尽管美国的盟友和高级政府官员警告这种行动是对区域和平的威胁。
尽管特朗普很乐观，但美国一直未能在朝鲜无核化问题上取得任何重大进展。已故特朗普政府官员，包括前国家安全顾问约翰·博尔顿和前参谋长约翰·凯利公开表示他们不相信金正日会自愿放弃他的核武库。
路透社本周早些时候看到的一份联合国报告称，平壤继续违反国际制裁，同时扩大其核能力和导弹能力。联合国表示，在中国船只的帮助下，朝鲜非法进口了精炼石油和价值约3.7亿美元的煤炭。
NORTH KOREA MAY BE PLANNING TO TEST NEW NUCLEAR-CAPABLE MISSILES THAT 'THREATEN OUR HOMELAND,' U.S. GENERAL WARNS
The chief of the U.S. North American Aerospace Defense Command has warned that North Korea may be planning fresh nuclear-capable intercontinental ballistic missile launches, citing recent engine tests in the secretive dictatorship.
General Terrence O'Shaughnessy, who also serves as the commander of the U.S. Northern Command, submitted a statement for a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing Thursday warning that 2020 might see Kim Jong Un resume the ICBM tests that have been frozen since December 2017.
At the end of last year, Kim promised to unveil a "new strategic weapon" in the "near future."
O'Shaughnessy said Thursday that although the dictator "did not specify what this new weapon would be, recent engine testing suggests North Korea may be prepared to flight-test an even more capable ICBM design," Yonhap news agency reported.
The commander added that such a weapon "could enhance Kim's ability to threaten our homeland during a crisis or conflict."
O'Shaughnessy stressed the importance of American ballistic missile defense in light of any new North Korean ICBM launches. U.S. defenses are "reliable and lethal," he said, and suggested that new short-range capabilities could also eventually be added.
Kim is yet to resume ICBM or nuclear weapon tests despite the failure of U.S.-North Korean negotiations over sanctions relief and denuclearization.
Last year, Kim promised to send a "Christmas gift" to President Donald Trump, which was widely interpreted as a threat to restart major weapons tests.
Kim did not follow through on the vow, but the North is believed to be continuing rocket and nuclear research despite its detente with the U.S.
Kim also ordered regular short-range missile tests over the course of 2019. Trump dismissed the launches as routine, though U.S. allies and senior administration officials warned such actions were a threat to regional peace.
For all Trump's optimism, the U.S. has been unable to make any significant headway on North Korean denuclearization. Departed Trump administration officials including former national security adviser John Bolton and former Chief of Staff John Kelly have publicly said they do not believe Kim will ever willingly surrender his nuclear arsenal.
A United Nations report seen by Reuters earlier this week said that Pyongyang is continuing to violate international sanctions while expanding its nuclear and missile capabilities. The UN said the North has illegally imported refined petroleum and some $370 million of coal with the help of Chinese ships.
