Intelligence agencies in the USA and South Korea see signs that North Korea is preparing to produce nuclear weapons-grade plutonium. The first steps are said to have taken place in the Yongbyon nuclear center.
According to media reports, North Korea may be preparing to produce more plutonium for its nuclear arsenal. Secret service authorities in South Korea and the USA had discovered signs that the reactor in the North Korean nuclear center Yongbyon had been shut down again, the South Korean newspaper “The Dong-A Ilbo” reported, citing informed circles. Shutting down the controversial plant is therefore the prerequisite for used fuel elements to be removed again and plutonium to be separated in the so-called reprocessing process.
Tensions on the Korean peninsula are currently escalating. North Korea, which the US considers hostile, has increased the scale of its ballistic missile tests since last year despite a ban by UN resolutions. Depending on the design, such rockets can also be equipped with a nuclear warhead.
Up to six kilograms of plutonium per year
According to the report, the reactor in Yongbyon has probably been shut down since the end of September. “Authorities in the US and South Korea believe this is an indication of reprocessing work to obtain weapons-grade plutonium,” a South Korean government official was quoted as saying. There was initially no official confirmation of this.
With an output of only five megawatts, the reactor is small, but can deliver up to six kilograms of plutonium per year. That would be roughly as much as is needed to build an atomic bomb. According to “Dong-A Ilbo”, the reactor was restarted in July 2021. It has been in operation since then. North Korea could theoretically obtain 12 to 16 kilograms of additional weapons plutonium. Experts suspect that around 50 kilograms of plutonium is stored in North Korea.
Source: Stern
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