On Thursday North Korea threatened a “pre-emptive strike” against the US that would engulf Washington “in a sea of fire”. However, these threats aren’t new. The state propaganda machine released an eerie simulation of a virtual American city in flames back in February accompanied by elevator music. Jay Carney, the White House Press Secretary, reassured the American people that the US is “fully capable” of defending itself against any attack from North Korea after the renewed threats on Thursday, which came after the UN Security Council approved new sanctions against North Korea.

The secretive country has been testing nuclear weapons over the past few months, and successfully too. A recent test in February caused an earthquake, and a couple of months before, North Korea successfully launched a nuclear missile after the embarrassment of their failed test back in 2012. The country seems to be a credible threat, however, the question everyone wants to know is whether or not the US is in range of their nuclear missiles.

CIA chief, George Tenet, told a Senate committee back in February that a three-stage Taepo Dong missile could hit the West coast of the US, where major cities such as Los Angeles and San Francisco are located. However, it is unclear at this stage whether or not the North Koreans have the capability to strike the West coast.

North Korea’s threats are in light of new UN sanctions which are aimed at making it harder for them to finance their nuclear program. US Ambassador to the UN, Susan Rice, said that North Korea’s threats will “achieve nothing” and “will only further isolate the country and its people and undermine international efforts to promote peace and stability in northeast Asia.” The reasons for these threats are out of anger for having the UN trying to rein in their nuclear program.

It was reported on Friday that Kim Jong-un, the oddball leader of the reclusive country, told North Korean soldiers to prepare for war. State TV have announced today that North Korean soldiers are keen to fight the “American imperialist aggressors”. Whether or not this is just an attempt to make the US back down and allow the North Koreans to attack South Korea, by allowing them to continue their nuclear program, is unclear. But it is unlikely the US will back down.