North Korea appears to be building new intercontinental ballistic missiles at a factory in Sanumdong, where the country’s first missiles capable of reaching the United States were produced, satellite images show.
According to evidence obtained by U.S. intelligence agencies, North Korea is working on one or two liquid-fueled ICBMs. The indicators of such activity come at a time when the leaders of the two nations are engaged in arms talks and are making efforts at diplomacy, and weeks after President Donald Trump declared that the hermit regime no longer posed a nuclear threat.
The evidence first uncovered in a Washington Post report follows shortly after revelations about a suspected, secretly-operated uranium-enrichment facility, called Kangson. Last week, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo acknowledged the existence of facilities producing “fissile material” but refused to make any mention of missiles. President Trump, on his part, said a week ago that satellite images showed North Korea was dismantling “a key missile site.”
“New images just today show that North Korea has begun the process of dismantling a key missile site, and we appreciate that,” he said.
The dismantling of the facility represents a fulfillment of a promise Kim Jong-un made during the Singapore summit with President Trump to “work toward denuclearization.”
However, the spy community has said that it has seen signs of continued activity, including at fuel plants. The U.S. Forces Korea commander also said recently that Pyongyang’s “production capability is still intact.”
“So we haven’t seen a complete shutdown of production yet. We have not seen the removal of fuel rods. These types of things tell us that there are steps that still must be taken on the road to denuclearization,” General Vincent Brooks said.
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