[Washington Post] The sorties by B-2 bombers marked a rare show of force by the Pentagon on the Korean Peninsula and followed a decision this month to bolster nuclear defenses along the U.S. West Coast by adding 14 missile interceptors in Alaska."We have to take seriously every provocative, bellicose word and action," [Defense Secretary Chuck] Hagel told news hounds during a news conference at the Pentagon on Thursday afternoon.
North Korea has used heated rhetoric for years, but its recent statements and actions have "ratcheted up the danger," Hagel said, adding: "We have to understand that new reality."