IDSA COMMENT North Korea – Construction of Nuclear Power Plant

In the latest game of one-upmanship vis-à-vis the US and other members of the six-party talks (SPT), North Korea has upped the ante by announcing to the world that there is no stopping its nuclear development programme. While the world grapples with the onerous task of getting Pyongyang back to the negotiating table by using a carrot-and-stick policy with the aim of denuclearising the Korean Peninsula, such a policy has only hardened Pyongyang’s position. The North has used the nuclear card and the SPT forum to extract more economic aid from the US, South Korea and Japan. China’s role in this has always remained suspect, while Russia’s role has remained minimal.
In its latest move, Pyongyang let it be known that it has started constructing an experimental light-water reactor at its Yongbyon nuclear site. The Yongbyon site has remained in the news since 1994 when Pyongyang had blasted the site just to confuse the world. This move demonstrates Pyongyang’s intent to grab international attention and pressure the US into returning to nuclear negotiations. Pyongyang disclosed this information to Siegfried Hecker, an international expert and former Director of the Los Alamos National Laboratory, during his recent visit to North Korea. Hecker, a regular visitor to Yongbyon, revealed in Beijing on 13 November that the output of the reactor was on a scale of 25 to 30 megawatts of electricity, but could take several years to complete. Hecker’s comments were also echoed by Charles Pritchard, who told South Korean officials that North Korea is constructing a facility at Yongbyon.
South Korean officials have not yet reportedly observed any satellite images suggesting that North Korea is currently involved in building a light-water reactor at Yongbyon but are watching related reports carefully. They also suggest that Pyongyang has so far threatened to build a reactor with its own technology. At the same time, some officials suggest that there was some digging activity in Yongbyon for which the purpose is unknown. Light water reactors, or LWR, are known to be the safest form of nuclear reactors in terms of proliferation, but trusting Pyongyang remains always questionable. More at:

http://www.idsa.in/idsacomments/NorthKoreaConstructionofNuclearPowerPlant_rpanda_sastry_181110