SEOUL, Sept. 2 (UPI) -- South Korea has acknowledged it conducted secret experiments to enrich uranium to weapons-grade status, the BBC reported Thursday.
An unidentified government official told the BBC the research, which involved the use of lasers to enrich nuclear fuel, was not authorized by the government, and was solely for the domestic production of nuclear fuel for the country's civil program.
However, analysts said there is no credible civilian use for the laser technique.
South Korean officials said the government only found out about the experiments in the last few months, and was now investigating the scientists responsible.
The country abandoned its nuclear weapons program in the 1970s, under intense pressure from the United States, and is among four other countries pushing North Korea to drop its nuclear program.
The discovery could also lead to calls for South Korea to be addressed by the U.N. Security Council, like North Korea.
