N. Korea publicly discloses uranium enrichment facility for 1st time

Seoul, Sep 13 (IANS) North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has called for increasing the number of centrifuges for uranium enrichment in order to increase its nuclear weapons for self-defence, the state media said on Friday.

Kim made the call during a visit to the Nuclear Weapons Institute and the "production base of weapon-grade nuclear materials", according to the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA). The dispatch did not release the location of the facility or date of the visit.

"He went round the control room of the uranium enrichment base to learn about the overall operation of the production lines," the KCNA said, adding that Kim expressed great satisfaction after being briefed that the "base is dynamically producing nuclear materials."

It marks the first time North Korea has publicly revealed details of its uranium enrichment facility, Yonhap news agency reported.

Kim also "stressed the need to further augment the number of centrifuges in order to exponentially increase the nuclear weapons for self-defence true to the Party's line of building up nuclear-armed forces," the KCNA said.

A uranium enrichment facility is used to produce highly enriched uranium by placing uranium in centrifuges and spinning it at high speeds. Highly enriched uranium is essential for the manufacture of nuclear warheads.

South Korean and US intelligence agencies believe North Korea operates uranium enrichment facilities at the Kangson nuclear complex near Pyongyang and at the Yongbyon nuclear site.

In 2010, North Korea invited Siegfried Hecker, a renowned American nuclear scientist, to inspect its uranium enrichment facility at Yongbyon.

Additionally, Kim called for improving the separation capacity of the centrifuges and accelerating the development of a new type of centrifuge to "further solidify the foundation for producing weapons-grade nuclear materials."

The sudden public disclosure of the uranium enrichment facility is seen as a move to flaunt North Korea's nuclear capabilities ahead of the US presidential election in November.

Earlier this month, during a key deterrence dialogue between South Korea and the US, the allies warned of the possibility that North Korea could conduct significant provocations, such as a nuclear test or an intercontinental ballistic missile launch, close to the election.

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