Activity seen at a factory in North Korea that produced the country’s first intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) indicates it is constructing new missiles, a US-based newspaper has reported quoting intelligence officials.
The Washington Post reported on Monday that US intelligence agencies are seeing signs that work is under way on one or two liquid-fueled ICBMs at the Sanumdong research facility, according to officials who spoke on the condition of anonymity.
Monday’s reports about ongoing activities at Sanumdong are the latest to indicate that North Korea is still working on its nuclear and missile facilities, despite ongoing talks with the US about disarmament.
In late June, it was reported that US intelligence agencies believe North Korea had upped uranium production in recent months and that North Korean officials were seeking to deceive the US in order to extract more concessions in talks.
US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un met in Singapore on June 12 and signed an agreement in which North Korea committed to “complete denuclearisation of the Korean Peninsula” without specifying a timeline.
Upon landing back in the US, Trump tweeted: “There is no longer a Nuclear Threat from North Korea”.
North-South military talks
Meanwhile, generals from the two Koreas have met at the border village of Panmunjom for talks about implementation of agreements on non-nuclear military issues reached at April’s inter-Korean summit.
In the second meeting of its kind since the April 27 meeting, generals are expected to discuss steps to disarm the jointly controlled area at Panmunjom, but no major announcement is expected.
Reporting from Seoul, Al Jazeera’s Rob McBride said Tuesday’s meeting between military officials from the two Koreas would be aimed at “trying to defuse tensions along the DMZ”.
Besides reducing the number of troops and weapons they are armed with, McBride said talks about the disputed sea border between North and South Korea could also be on the agenda.
“North Korea doesn’t recognise exactly where that sea border should be and it’s hoped that they can have some agreement to prevent further clashes in the future,” he said. (Aljazeera)
