IAEA members raise 'concern' over North Korea nuclear expansion
In a report ahead of the conference, the agency's head Rafael Grossi said it had identified an additional uranium enrichment facility at Yongbyon, which Pyongyang purportedly decommissioned after talks but later reactivated in 2021.
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) members voiced growing apprehension over escalating nuclear activities in North Korea during their annual conference in Vienna. In a resolution passed on Thursday, the agency's 103 member countries, backed by 61, expressed serious concerns over the DPRK's nuclear program. Only six nations, including Russia and China, opposed the motion, with 14 abstentions.
The resolution emphasized that North Korea's nuclear activities "continue to be a cause of serious concern" and urged the government to halt all such activities. Kim Yo Jong, the sister of North Korea's leader, dismissed calls for denuclearization as "familiar silly talk" at the IAEA conference, stating that North Korea's nuclear-armed status is "absolute."
North Korea is believed to operate uranium enrichment facilities at Yongbyon, Kangson, and Kusong. The country reportedly decommissioned a uranium enrichment facility at Yongbyon in 2021, but it later reactivated it. Additionally, a new annex at the Kangson enrichment site is operational, indicating further expansion in the DPRK's capacity to produce weapons-grade nuclear material.
The agency's chief, Rafael Grossi, identified an extra uranium enrichment facility at Yongbyon ahead of the conference, highlighting the country's long-term plan to strengthen its national nuclear force, announced by Kim Jong Un in February.
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