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| A handout photo made available by DigitalGlobe on Wednesday of a commercial satellite image acquired on March 2 showing the Sohae (Tongchang-ri) Satellite Launching Station in North Pyongan Province, North Korea. EPA-Yonhap |
N. Korea shows signs of rebuilding nuclear, missile facilities
By Lee Min-hyung
Voices of skepticism and disappointment toward North Korea are growing stronger inside the United States following reports that it has started to rebuild its nuclear and missile facilities.
The North's abrupt shift in relations with the U.S. came only a few days after the breakdown of the second summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.
In recent days, a series of signs have been detected of the possible resumption of operations at North Korea's major missile and nuclear sites.
On Thursday, the National Assembly Intelligence Committee quoted National Intelligence Service (NIS) chief Suh Hoon as saying in a meeting Tuesday that the NIS had detected movement of transport vehicles at the Sanum-dong missile research facility in Pyongyang. The center is known as a manufacturing facility for intercontinental ballistic missiles that can reach the U.S. mainland.
The NIS is also known to have told the committee that uranium enrichment facilities at the Yongbyon nuclear facility are operating "normally."
According to the Washington-based Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), North Korea is also rebuilding its Sohae Satellite Launching Station at Tongchang-ri. The U.S. think tank cited satellite images of the facility as evidence for the claim.
The North's young leader had promised to dismantle the Tongchang-ri facility during his three-day summit with South Korean President Moon Jae-in in Pyongyang last September.
The government said it would keep a close watch on any unusual movements by the North. Cheong Wa Dae and the Ministry of National Defense said details over such reports are monitored thoroughly by the military authorities in Seoul and Washington.
"We are paying close attention to any movements at Tongchang-ri and Sanum-dong," defense ministry spokeswoman Choi Hyun-soo said Thursday in a media briefing. The military intelligence authorities from the U.S. and South Korea closely cooperate on such issues, she added.
The ongoing signs of the North resuming its weapons programs come amid growing uncertainty in relations between Washington and Pyongyang following the failed summit.
Prior to the two-day summit late last month in Hanoi, Vietnam, expectations were that Trump and Kim would be able to sign a deal on denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula.
But with the summit ending in failure, the rare momentum for peace has reached a deadlock.
On Wednesday, Trump also expressed regret over the North's signs of resuming its nuclear armament.
"I would be very disappointed if that is happening," Trump told reporters at the White House. But he remained cautious by saying "it is a very early report."
U.S. National Security Adviser John Bolton said Tuesday in a local media interview that Washington would maintain a hardline stance against the North unless the regime took appropriate steps for denuclearization.
"They (the North) are not going to get relief from the crushing economic sanctions that have been imposed on them," he said. "And we will look at ramping those sanctions up in fact."
To mediate the ongoing stalemate, South Korea is stepping up efforts to get both sides to resume their talks as soon as possible.
Lee Do-hoon, the special representative for Korean Peninsula peace and security affairs, departed Wednesday for the U.S. for a meeting with his U.S. counterpart Steve Biegun. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Lee has expressed the need for the U.S. to restart denuclearization talks with the North to resolve the post-summit deadlock.
