North Korea unveils new plant to produce nuclear bomb fuels
What's the story
North Korea has unveiled a new facility for producing nuclear bomb fuel, with leader Kim Jong-Un pledging to expand the country's nuclear forces "at an exponential rate." The official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported that Kim visited the plant and approved "an ambitious future plan designed to beef up our state's nuclear forces at an exponential rate." State media images showed a large hall filled with cylindrical centrifuges used for enriching uranium for nuclear weapons.
Capacity increase
Unverified claims of increased production capacity
Kim claimed that North Korea's production capacity for weapons-grade nuclear materials has more than doubled in the last five years. However, this claim remains unverified. Estimates of North Korea's current nuclear arsenal vary widely, with a senior South Korean official estimating between 20 and 60 nuclear weapons in 2018, while some experts now believe it exceeds 100 warheads.
Facility assessment
Denuclearization talks failed in the past
Kim implemented the push for more nuclear weapons as part of a five-year strategy after denuclearization talks with the United States, including three summits with US President Donald Trump during his first term, were unsuccessful. The news of the new North Korean nuclear plant comes as Washington is attempting to reach an agreement to halt the months-long US-Israeli war with Iran and convince Tehran to hand over nuclear materials that it claims may be used to build nuclear weapons.
Defensive stance
Nuclear program viewed as defensive measure
North Korea has long viewed its nuclear program as a defensive measure against what Kim called threats from "the most ferocious enemies," referring to the United States and South Korea. The country sees its nuclear arsenal as a deterrent against US military forces stationed on the Korean Peninsula. Pyongyang has also declared its path toward nuclear armament "irreversible."
Treaty withdrawal
Nuclear tests banned under UN sanctions
North Korea withdrew from the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) in 1993 and has conducted six nuclear tests since then, resulting in multiple rounds of United Nations sanctions. Although its last test was conducted in 2017, North Korea continues to expand its inventory of nuclear-capable missiles with enough range to reach US allies in Asia as well as the American mainland.