[속보] 안규백 “북 핵무기 80∼120개…정확한 수치 언급은 제한”

On the 20th, North Korea's Defense Minister An Gye-bak stated that the United States President Donald Trump's claim that North Korea possesses 57 nuclear weapons was limited, saying, "It's quite difficult for us to provide an exact number for the number of North Korea's nuclear weapons." This statement led to controversy, with An clarifying that his comments represented the assessment of a domestic research institute, not an official North Korean position.

During a meeting with the National Assembly's Defense Committee, a lawmaker asked, "Whether North Korea has 57 or not, does the government recognize that it possesses nuclear weapons?" An replied, "We cannot officially recognize North Korea as a nuclear-armed country." The lawmaker then pushed for a response on how to respond, to which An warned, "As a defense minister, it's very careful to ask how many nuclear weapons North Korea has, as that would be admitting the country's possession of nuclear weapons."

Opposition lawmaker Kim Byung-ju cautioned that asking a defense minister about the number of nuclear weapons could be "unfortunate," as it would acknowledge North Korea's nuclear arsenal.