; Whereas, on September 9, 2016, North Korea conducted its fifth nuclear test, which it said was a warhead that could be standardized for its ballistic missiles; Whereas, on September 15, 2016, Admiral Harry Harris, Commander of U.S. Pacific Command, stated Combining nuclear warheads with ballistic missile technology in the hands of a volatile leader like Kim Jong-un, is a recipe for disaster. ; Whereas, on September 16, 2016, Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter stated Everyone can see that North Korea is determined to try to expand its missile threat to the peninsula, to the region, and to the United States. ; Whereas in 2016 North Korea willfully violated multiple United Nations Security Council Resolutions over 20 times, through its nuclear tests, missile tests, and satellite launch; Whereas, on January 6, 2017, Deputy Secretary of State Antony Blinken stated that North Korea had conducted 24 missile tests in the past year, as well as two nuclear tests and in our assessment, we have a qualitative improvement in their capabilities in the past year as a result of this unprecedented level of activity ; Whereas, on January 8, 2017, North Korea declared that it is ready to test-launch an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM); and Whereas the threat of a nuclear North Korea with a functional and operational intercontinental ballistic missile program with nuclear warheads poses a direct threat to the United States: Now, therefore, be it