North Korea Will 'Weaponize' All Plutonium Stocks

By Jess Kilby,  Newser Staff
Posted Jun 13, 2009 4:49 AM CDT
North Korea Will 'Weaponize' All Plutonium Stocks
In this photo released by U.S. researchers who visited North Korea, a North Korean official is seen at the Yongbyon Nuclear Center in North Korea Thursday, Feb. 14, 2008.    (AP Photo/S. S. Hecker, HO)

North Korea has for the first time openly confirmed that it is seeking to enrich uranium for the development of nuclear weapons, the BBC reports. The state news agency today announced that the nation plans to “weaponize” its plutonium stocks, and will consider any “blockade” attempts by the US and its allies as an “act of war.”

“Firstly, all plutonium to be extracted will be weaponized. One third of used fuel rods have so far been reprocessed. Secondly, we will start uranium enrichment,” the statement said. An analyst said North Korea is “out of control” right now, noting that neither sanctions nor financial incentives have tempered the country’s nuclear ambitions.
(More North Korea stories.)

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