DPRK says it has resumed plutonium production: report
The Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) says it has resumed plutonium production by reprocessing spent fuel rods and has no plans to stop nuclear tests as long as perceived US threats remain, Japan's Kyodo news agency reported on August 17.-
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The DPRK's Atomic Energy Institute, which has jurisdiction over the country's Yongbyon nuclear facilities, also told Kyodo it had been producing highly enriched uranium necessary for nuclear arms and power "as scheduled."
"We have reprocessed spent nuclear fuel rods removed from a graphite-moderated reactor," the institute told Kyodo in a written interview.
The institute did not disclose the amount of plutonium or enriched uranium it had produced, Kyodo said, but it has been understood for months that the DPRK has resumed plutonium production at the site.
In June, the UN nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency, said the DPRK appeared to have reopened the Yongbyon plant to produce plutonium from spent fuel, and a senior official of the US State Department said the DPRK had restarted production of element.
On August 17, the US State Department said it was aware of the reported the DPRK comments and called such activities "a clear violation" of UN resolutions.
"We call on the DPRK to refrain from actions and rhetoric that further raise tensions in the region," said Katina Adams, a spokeswoman for the department.
