UN Watchdog Flags New North Korean Uranium Enrichment Site Amid Arsenal Expansion

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has expressed “serious concern” over indications that North Korea has constructed a new facility capable of enriching weapons-grade uranium to expand its nuclear arsenal.

The new structure at the country’s primary Yongbyon nuclear complex can accommodate up to 28 centrifuge cascades—machinery typically used for uranium enrichment—according to a report released this week by the nuclear watchdog.

The regime has also expanded operations at an enrichment facility in Kangson, near the capital Pyongyang, the report states. The findings are based on an analysis of satellite imagery and open-source materials, including photographs published by state media.

The IAEA, which expelled its inspectors from North Korea in 2009, identified the Yongbyon building as the site’s second uranium enrichment facility by comparing satellite images taken during its construction with media photographs of a visit by leader Kim Jong-un in early June.

During the visit, Kim claimed that the North’s capacity to produce weapons-grade nuclear material had more than doubled over the past five years, according to state media, while promising “vast future plans to exponentially strengthen the country’s nuclear forces”.

Citing a 2025 analysis by the James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies, South Korea’s Chosun Daily reported that the potential 28 cascades—comprising 4,592 centrifuges at the Yongbyon facility—could produce approximately 85 kg of weapons-grade highly enriched uranium annually, enough for three or four additional warheads.

In a statement released this week, IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi said: “The ongoing operation of enrichment facilities at Kangson and Yongbyon, along with the reported further expansion of [North Korea’s] production of weapons-grade nuclear material, is a cause for serious concern.”

“The continuation and further development” of North Korea’s nuclear programme constitute “clear violations of relevant UN Security Council resolutions and are deeply regrettable,” he added.

South Korea’s defence minister, Ahn Gyu-back, stated in August that the North possessed between 80 and 120 nuclear warheads—a significantly higher figure than the 57 cited by Donald Trump that same month. Ahn told lawmakers that the South Korean estimate was based on private research organizations, adding that the military could not confirm the exact numbers.

North Korea has made rapid progress in its ballistic missile and nuclear programmes in recent years, demanding international recognition as a legitimate nuclear state.

North Korea has conducted multiple long-range missile tests since 2017, the year it last tested a nuclear weapon. In a 2020 report to the UN Security Council, international experts stated that the North had “probably developed nuclear devices to fit into the warheads of its ballistic missiles.”

Source link