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Defector explains plutonium no longer needed for North Korea weapons
program
By Tong Xin
Epoch Times staff
Feb 26, 2007
According to a formerly high-ranking North Korean official, the
facilities North Korea pledged to close in six party talks in mid-
February have in fact been closed for ten years and are not needed for
North Korea's nuclear weapons program.
According to reports by Dong-A llbo , one of the three largest
newspapers in South Korea, on Feb. 19 former North Korea Worker's
Party International Affairs Secretary Hwang Jang-yop disclosed through
Radio Free North Korea that the Yongbyon nuclear facilities, which
North Korea promised to shut down and seal off in exchange for one
billion tons of heavy crude oil, were in fact already useless to the
North Korean regime ten years ago.
Hwang, known as as the "soul" of the "juche ideology," which
emphasizes the self reliance of North Korea, defected to South Korea
ten years ago.
The Yongbon facilities were used for processing plutonium with
graphite. Hwang said that he personally heard from the secretary of
the munitions industries Chon Pyong-ho more than ten years ago (in
1996) that they no-longer use graphite to extract plutonium.
"Before then, they even often said to me, 'Why doesn't the
international secretary manage to buy more plutonium?' Later on, they
said, 'It is not necessary now. We are able to use uranium 235 to make
nuclear weapons now,'" said Hwang.
"Now they own a lot of nuclear material, but they deny this fact,"
said Hwang.
Compared to plutonium, uranium 235 or highly enriched uranium (HEU)
nuclear weapons do not require as much manufacturing and
administrative expense.
Hwang has repeatedly said, "Before this [before 1996], the then-
secretary of the arms industry Jeon Byung Ho said to me, 'We still
want to make a few nuclear weapons, I hope the international secretary
will bring some plutonium back when going abroad.' However, after
coming home from visiting foreign countries in 1996, secretary Jeon
said, 'there is no need to buy plutonium anymore, we have signed an
agreement with Pakistan for HEU technology.'"
Hwang said, "From a technical view point, what they claimed to freeze
up refers to the weapon production using plutonium and graphite in the
Yongbyon region. But up until now, North Korea still totally denies
the use of HEU and the joint manufacturing of weapons with Pakistan."
South Korean Official Confirms
According to a report published by South Korea's largest newspaper the
Chosun newspaper on Feb. 21, the director general of South Korea
National Intelligence Service Kim Man-bok said that, "According to
what I know, North Korea has that [HEU] program."
But afterwards, South Korea Unification Minister Lee Jae-Jung took a
different standpoint in a speech and expressed that there was no
evidence to confirm that North Korea has the program.
Another Unification Ministry officer then further explained, "Lee Jae-
Jung's speech is not to deny the existence of HEU, but to indicate
that there was no related intelligence information. He did not say
whether North Korea has that program."
North Korea admitted to producing HEU in October 2002, but has denied
it ever since.
A Daily NK opinion article published on Feb. 15 also said that,
although North Korea has admitted that they produce HEU, their present
official position is that "If the U.S. can present evidence, they will
discuss the problem of HEU."
The Beijing agreement stipulated that the joint statement of the six-
party talks contains an inventory of North Korea's entire nuclear
program including the plutonium extracted from spent fuel rod. In
order to comply with the agreement, North Korea needs to only insist
on the official position that, "We are not engaged in the HEU
procedures."
"That is to say, in the process of discussion, the HEU problem may
very likely disappear. This is the biggest blind spot in the current
Beijing agreement," said the Daily NK article.
According to a recent report by the Korean Daily , 78 percent of South
Koreans think that North Korea will not stay committed to the
agreement.
Defector explains plutonium no longer needed for North Korea weapons
program
By Tong Xin
Epoch Times staff
Feb 26, 2007
According to a formerly high-ranking North Korean official, the
facilities North Korea pledged to close in six party talks in mid-
February have in fact been closed for ten years and are not needed for
North Korea's nuclear weapons program.
According to reports by Dong-A llbo , one of the three largest
newspapers in South Korea, on Feb. 19 former North Korea Worker's
Party International Affairs Secretary Hwang Jang-yop disclosed through
Radio Free North Korea that the Yongbyon nuclear facilities, which
North Korea promised to shut down and seal off in exchange for one
billion tons of heavy crude oil, were in fact already useless to the
North Korean regime ten years ago.
Hwang, known as as the "soul" of the "juche ideology," which
emphasizes the self reliance of North Korea, defected to South Korea
ten years ago.
The Yongbon facilities were used for processing plutonium with
graphite. Hwang said that he personally heard from the secretary of
the munitions industries Chon Pyong-ho more than ten years ago (in
1996) that they no-longer use graphite to extract plutonium.
"Before then, they even often said to me, 'Why doesn't the
international secretary manage to buy more plutonium?' Later on, they
said, 'It is not necessary now. We are able to use uranium 235 to make
nuclear weapons now,'" said Hwang.
"Now they own a lot of nuclear material, but they deny this fact,"
said Hwang.
Compared to plutonium, uranium 235 or highly enriched uranium (HEU)
nuclear weapons do not require as much manufacturing and
administrative expense.
Hwang has repeatedly said, "Before this [before 1996], the then-
secretary of the arms industry Jeon Byung Ho said to me, 'We still
want to make a few nuclear weapons, I hope the international secretary
will bring some plutonium back when going abroad.' However, after
coming home from visiting foreign countries in 1996, secretary Jeon
said, 'there is no need to buy plutonium anymore, we have signed an
agreement with Pakistan for HEU technology.'"
Hwang said, "From a technical view point, what they claimed to freeze
up refers to the weapon production using plutonium and graphite in the
Yongbyon region. But up until now, North Korea still totally denies
the use of HEU and the joint manufacturing of weapons with Pakistan."
South Korean Official Confirms
According to a report published by South Korea's largest newspaper the
Chosun newspaper on Feb. 21, the director general of South Korea
National Intelligence Service Kim Man-bok said that, "According to
what I know, North Korea has that [HEU] program."
But afterwards, South Korea Unification Minister Lee Jae-Jung took a
different standpoint in a speech and expressed that there was no
evidence to confirm that North Korea has the program.
Another Unification Ministry officer then further explained, "Lee Jae-
Jung's speech is not to deny the existence of HEU, but to indicate
that there was no related intelligence information. He did not say
whether North Korea has that program."
North Korea admitted to producing HEU in October 2002, but has denied
it ever since.
A Daily NK opinion article published on Feb. 15 also said that,
although North Korea has admitted that they produce HEU, their present
official position is that "If the U.S. can present evidence, they will
discuss the problem of HEU."
The Beijing agreement stipulated that the joint statement of the six-
party talks contains an inventory of North Korea's entire nuclear
program including the plutonium extracted from spent fuel rod. In
order to comply with the agreement, North Korea needs to only insist
on the official position that, "We are not engaged in the HEU
procedures."
"That is to say, in the process of discussion, the HEU problem may
very likely disappear. This is the biggest blind spot in the current
Beijing agreement," said the Daily NK article.
According to a recent report by the Korean Daily , 78 percent of South
Koreans think that North Korea will not stay committed to the
agreement.
