IAEA reports new uranium enrichment facility in North Korea
The International Atomic Energy Agency has reported a new uranium enrichment facility at North Korea’s main nuclear complex in Yongbyon. According to the agency’s assessment, the two-story building may accommodate up to 28 cascades of gas centrifuges. This was reported by the Jerusalem Post, citing an IAEA report.
Satellite imagery and state media photographs
In a report dated August 28, the agency said it had monitored Pyongyang’s nuclear activities using satellite imagery and open-source materials, including photographs from North Korean state media. The IAEA has had no inspectors in North Korea since 2009.
The agency identified the new structure in Yongbyon as the second uranium enrichment facility at the site by comparing photographs from North Korean leader Kim Jong Un’s June visit with satellite images taken during construction. According to the IAEA, the photographs show gas centrifuge cascades installed on the upper and lower floors of the main building.
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Expansion of the Kangson facility
The IAEA also reported signs that operations began in January at a uranium enrichment facility in Kangson near North Korea’s capital, Pyongyang. The facility is an extension built in 2024.
IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi told the Board of Governors that the operation of the facilities in Kangson and Yongbyon, as well as reports of North Korea’s further expansion of weapons-grade nuclear material production, are a matter of serious concern. The agency stressed that these changes in North Korea’s nuclear program violate UN Security Council resolutions. Pyongyang has previously rejected the IAEA’s authority, stating that North Korea’s status as a nuclear state is irreversible.
