New activity detected at North Korea's Yongbyon nuclear site

SEOUL, Sept. 9 (UPI) -- New activity was detected in North Korea's Yongbyon nuclear site but the level of movement made it difficult to assess whether Pyongyang was producing plutonium.

Satellite images from Aug. 22 analyzed on 38 North, a Johns Hopkins University website dedicated to North Korea issues, indicated a relatively high level of vehicle activity around the 5 MWe reactor hall.

Tire tracks that traveled to the ground level of the building showed that workers had been unloading materials in a complex where scientists chemically separate uranium and other radioactive materials into metal form, in order to build nuclear weapons.

Tracks left by heavy vehicles could be seen between buildings, according to analysts William Mugford and Jack Liu. Some tracks led to the spent-fuel receiving building, while others were centered on the support building where a line of trucks may have been waiting to unload at different times. The spent-fuel receiving building is where the spent or used nuclear fuel enters the main reprocessing building.

The analysts stated the information given was not sufficient to determine the precise reasons for activity in Yongbyon. The facilities could be undergoing renovation as part of an ongoing program to modernize and upgrade; contaminated equipment at the 5 MWe reactor hall could be in the process of being replaced; or spent fuel rods were being unloaded to produce new plutonium.

The international community is closely monitoring developments at Yongbyon. Voice of America reported Monday the International Atomic Energy Agency had said it has observed renovation and construction activities at various locations within Yongbyon.

"These appear to be broadly consistent with the DPRK's statements that it is further developing its nuclear capabilities," IAEA Director General Yukiya Amano said.