North Korea propaganda video depicts nuclear attack on Washington

North Korea released a dramatic propaganda video Saturday (on youtube of all places), called "Last Chance" that depicts a nuclear strike on Washington, complete with animation of a missile slamming into the earth near the Lincoln Memorial.

The four-minute video, backed by a hyper musical score reminiscent of TV Westerns of the 1960s, includes a mushroom cloud and an American flag going up in flames. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DbOYRLlhIP4

It was posted to the YouTube channel of D.P.R.K. Today, a North Korean website, and includes a rapid-fire catalog of "humiliating defeats" meted out to the United States over the years, including the North's capture of an American ship, the Pueblo, in 1968.

"If the American imperialists provoke us a bit, we will not hesitate to slap them with a pre-emptive nuclear strike," read the Korean subtitles in the video, according to The New York Times. "The United States must choose! It's up to you whether the nation called the United States exists on this planet or not."

North Korea has become increasingly erratic recently. The young leader, Kim Jung Eun, has executed at least 70 high ranking military officials in the last 2 years. This undoubtedly creates fear throughout the ruling echelon. Meanwhile, the People's Republic of China, the DPRK's most important ally, has voted for and supported economic sanctions imposed by the U.N.

The video may be a desperate attempt for an irrelevant, small hermit nation to gain attention to its needs and problems. The video comes amid increasing tensions with Pyongyang over repeated missiles tests, a nuclear test and a long-range rocket launch this year. The moves sparked new sanctions by the U.S. and United Nations. North Korea has also repeatedly issued nuclear strike threats against both Seoul and Washington.

North Korea warned Saturday that it is ready to strike the South Korean presidential palace unless South Korea's president apologizes for "treason" and "publicly executes" officials responsible for what Pyongyang says are plans to attack its leadership, the North's official Korean Central News Agency reported.