Kim between centrifuges
North Korea provides first glimpse of uranium enrichment plant
13.09.2024, 05:17
North Korea wants to expand the production of weapons-grade nuclear material. State media photos show ruler Kim in a uranium enrichment plant. It is the first time that such images have been seen.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un visited a uranium enrichment plant and demanded new centrifuges for it. As the state news agency KCNA reported, more weapons-grade material for nuclear bombs is to be produced. Attached to the North Korean agency’s report on Kim’s visit to the plant were photos that provided a rare insight into the North Korean nuclear program, which is banned by several UN Security Council resolutions. According to the South Korean news agency Yonhap, this is the first time North Korea has made details about a uranium enrichment plant public.
The photos showed Kim standing between long rows of metal centrifuges, the machines used to enrich uranium. The report did not say when the visit took place or where the facility is located. Kim said earlier this week that the country wanted to increase its stockpile of nuclear weapons “exponentially.”
North Korea is believed to have several uranium enrichment facilities. Analysts say commercial satellite images show construction at the main Yongbyon nuclear research center in recent years, including the uranium enrichment facility, suggesting a possible expansion.
International Atomic Energy Agency chief Rafael Grossi said on Monday that the UN nuclear watchdog had observed activities consistent with the operation of a reactor and the reported centrifuge enrichment facility at Yongbyon. Estimates of the number of North Korea’s nuclear weapons vary widely. In July, a report by the Federation of American Scientists concluded that the country may have produced enough fissile material to build as many as 90 nuclear warheads, but that it has probably assembled more like 50.