Samstwitch
Senior Member
- Messages
- 5,111
Russia warns of 'catastrophe' if N.Korea restarts reactor
Russia on Thursday warned of a potential "man-made catastrophe" if North Korea restarts an ageing plutonium reactor to boost its stockpile of nuclear weapons, after US experts spotted steam rising from the Yongbyon facility.
The reactor, which was completed in 1986, is outdated and North Korea could suffer a major disaster if it is restarted, a Russian diplomatic source told the Interfax news agency.
The warning came after researchers at the US-Korea Institute said Wednesday that satellite images taken on August 31 showed plumes of white steam rising from a building next to the reactor.
"Our main concern is linked to a very likely man-made disaster as a consequence. The reactor is in a nightmarish state, it is a design dating back to the 1950s," the Russian source said.
"For the Korean peninsula this could entail terrible consequences, if not a man-made catastrophe."
The US envoy on North Korea meanwhile said the reported restart of the reactor would be "a misstep on the part of North Korea".
"If it turns out that these reports are true that North Korea has restarted the five-megawatt plutonium reactor, this would be a very serious matter," Glyn Davies told reporters after meeting Japanese foreign ministry officials in Tokyo.
Such a move would "seriously violate the United Nations Security Council resolutions" and North Korea's commitments under a 2005 joint statement after six-party talks, Davies said.
The Russian diplomat speaking to Interfax said he did not know for sure whether North Korea had relaunched the facility mothballed in 2007.
"It is obvious that some works are being conducted, and for a long time at that. According to some signs, steps were indeed being taken to relaunch it," the diplomat said.
"We do not have any information that the reactor has been relaunched."
The image examined by researchers at the US-Korea Institute shows that North Korea "appears to have put the reactor into operation", researchers Nick Hansen and Jeffrey Lewis wrote on the institute's blog, 38 North.
But the white steam "could simply be testing of the generator", the Russian diplomatic source cited by Interfax cautioned. (Continued)
CLICK ME to read Full Article
Russia on Thursday warned of a potential "man-made catastrophe" if North Korea restarts an ageing plutonium reactor to boost its stockpile of nuclear weapons, after US experts spotted steam rising from the Yongbyon facility.
The reactor, which was completed in 1986, is outdated and North Korea could suffer a major disaster if it is restarted, a Russian diplomatic source told the Interfax news agency.
The warning came after researchers at the US-Korea Institute said Wednesday that satellite images taken on August 31 showed plumes of white steam rising from a building next to the reactor.
"Our main concern is linked to a very likely man-made disaster as a consequence. The reactor is in a nightmarish state, it is a design dating back to the 1950s," the Russian source said.
"For the Korean peninsula this could entail terrible consequences, if not a man-made catastrophe."
The US envoy on North Korea meanwhile said the reported restart of the reactor would be "a misstep on the part of North Korea".
"If it turns out that these reports are true that North Korea has restarted the five-megawatt plutonium reactor, this would be a very serious matter," Glyn Davies told reporters after meeting Japanese foreign ministry officials in Tokyo.
Such a move would "seriously violate the United Nations Security Council resolutions" and North Korea's commitments under a 2005 joint statement after six-party talks, Davies said.
The Russian diplomat speaking to Interfax said he did not know for sure whether North Korea had relaunched the facility mothballed in 2007.
"It is obvious that some works are being conducted, and for a long time at that. According to some signs, steps were indeed being taken to relaunch it," the diplomat said.
"We do not have any information that the reactor has been relaunched."
The image examined by researchers at the US-Korea Institute shows that North Korea "appears to have put the reactor into operation", researchers Nick Hansen and Jeffrey Lewis wrote on the institute's blog, 38 North.
But the white steam "could simply be testing of the generator", the Russian diplomatic source cited by Interfax cautioned. (Continued)
CLICK ME to read Full Article
